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History
of Parking
As with everything else they do, the power of councils
to enforce parking regulations derives ultimately from
Acts of Parliament.
The Road Traffic Regulation Act 1984 first enabled
councils to enforce certain parking acts, although parking
offences were dealt with and enforcement action taken
through the criminal court system. A considerable number
of parking offences, primarily those concerning restricted
(yellow line) parking remained the responsibility of the
police and the police traffic warden service.
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The Road Traffic Act 1991 brought about a number of key
changes in the above arrangements. Parking "offences" enforced
by councils were "decriminalised" and brought within the civil
enforcement system. At the same time a number of additional enforcement
responsibilities, such as restricted (yellow line) parking, were
removed from the police and also given to councils.
The provisions of the Road Traffic Act 1991 were first implemented
by the 33 London Boroughs during 1993/94. Since the late 1990s
an increasing number of councils outside London have also taken
up decriminalised enforcement powers. It is these councils in
England and Wales, (not including London), for whom the National
Parking Adjudication Service provides the independent appeals
service required by the Road Traffic Act 1991.
Before any council can take up decriminalised enforcement powers
it must first prepare a detailed proposal which is submitted to
the Secretary of State for Transport (in England) or for Secretary
of State for Wales. Only once this has been approved and the council's
scheme is deemed to be viable, will permission be given to prepare
for and introduce a decriminalised parking enforcement regime.
Legal powers to implement the scheme are granted formally through
the enactment of what is known as an Order in Parliament, through
the Statutory Instrument process. All councils operating decriminalised
parking must be in possession of such an Order, known as a Special
Parking Area Order (SPA Order), before they commence enforcement.
Along with the Acts of Parliament mentioned above, the Road
Traffic (Parking Adjudicators) (England and Wales) Regulations
1999 (S.I. 1999 No. 1918) govern the management and conduct
of parking appeals in England and Wales (outside London).
The Transport Act 2000 (Section 144) provides for Regulations
to be made allowing any council in England that already has the
power to enforce parking contraventions in the decriminalised
scheme to undertake the civil enforcement of bus lane contraventions.
These regulations, the Bus Lane Contraventions (Penalty Charges,
Adjudication and Enforcement) (England) Regulations 2005 (ST2005
No 2757), came into force on 1st November 2005. Unlike parking,
both the police and the council have the power to enforce bus
lane contraventions; however, if the police take criminal proceedings
in respect of the bus lane contravention the council must cease
enforcement and cancel their penalty charge notice.
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