A city councillor has hit out at what he says is a lack of enforcement on parking contraventions. Holgate ward councillor James Alexander says he has grown tired of seeing drivers flouting parking laws and parking where they see fit in car parks which are full. He said:

"I sometimes use Peel Street car park, off Walmgate, on a Sunday if I am going shopping and need a car to get big items home. But this has become extremely frustrating after countless times seeing cars parked in unmarked areas, simply because the car park is full. This is unacceptable behaviour, and not addressing it will simply make the problem worse. Parking enforcement should not be a cash cow for the council but having none at all will only exacerbate the problem".

Coun. Alexander says individuals cannot be prosecuted by having photographic evidence presented of their parking contraventions due to parking law. He says parking tickets must be issued by Civil Enforcement Officers (CEOs), which are often thin on the ground.

He commented:

"The council has said Peel Street car park is not given much attention on Sundays because it is the only council car park which is free of charge on Sundays. It also says it only has limited staff resources, particularly on Sundays, to enforce the parking restrictions throughout the city.

"It gives the impression parking is something of a free for all, and drivers can park as they like and probably get away with it. It makes life difficult for the law abiding driver who gets boxed in by someone who couldn't care less and there ought to be proper enforcement so this practice stops".

Councillor Alexander has asked that notices are erected in a more prominent way so that those who flout the law can be reported quickly and for free by motorists who encounter the same problems.