Parking in Westminster to cost £1.50 a day from August 6th
Discussion
I returned to my bike yesterday to see that the council with no regard to anyone, apperntly, has arbitrarily decided to charge £1.50 a day(or £150 a year) for parking a bike in a bike bay.
They claim that the charge is to pay for the cost of installing up to 1000 new spaces. They also claim that this will cost £80,000.
Is anyone else thinking " this is stark raving bonkers!"?
There are currently 4,500 spaces in Westminster, so if they put in an extra 1000 it will take them just under ten days of the charge top pay for it. Then what? will the revenue go to making Westminster better for bikers? Don't make me laugh.
Bikes are c-charge free because they don't cause congestion. They don't pollute as much as cars or buses either, but Westminster will still charge you for using one.
Where are the protests?
Where are MAG and London Bikers on this one?
Does no one care?
Am I alone in thinking that we're about to be fleeced yet again by Westminster?
They claim that the charge is to pay for the cost of installing up to 1000 new spaces. They also claim that this will cost £80,000.
Is anyone else thinking " this is stark raving bonkers!"?
There are currently 4,500 spaces in Westminster, so if they put in an extra 1000 it will take them just under ten days of the charge top pay for it. Then what? will the revenue go to making Westminster better for bikers? Don't make me laugh.
Bikes are c-charge free because they don't cause congestion. They don't pollute as much as cars or buses either, but Westminster will still charge you for using one.
Where are the protests?
Where are MAG and London Bikers on this one?
Does no one care?
Am I alone in thinking that we're about to be fleeced yet again by Westminster?
Not alone at all. After they quietly announced plans on their website some time ago (which i think was posted on here) i logged an objection and continued to do so at every opportunity. As expected they ignore the public.
I'm not entirely sure where they've created the extra bays. Re-painted a few but not made them bigger.
It seems anything with an engine is the enemy these days.
I'm not entirely sure where they've created the extra bays. Re-painted a few but not made them bigger.
It seems anything with an engine is the enemy these days.
So......
I work in the City, and live in zone 5. It currently costs me £41.40pw for my travelcard.
IF (and when) they introduce this charge to the City it will cost £7.50 pw to park your bike should you be fortunate enough to find a space. If i was to ride my bike in, it would cost £25 in petrol.
so the question is, would it be worth risking my neck day in day out to save a whopping £8.90?
Have you considered that Westminster may be trying to force more bikes off the road to attempt to get the public to rely on our already overcrowded shyte public transport system ?
In reality though, it's to make money.
I work in the City, and live in zone 5. It currently costs me £41.40pw for my travelcard.
IF (and when) they introduce this charge to the City it will cost £7.50 pw to park your bike should you be fortunate enough to find a space. If i was to ride my bike in, it would cost £25 in petrol.
so the question is, would it be worth risking my neck day in day out to save a whopping £8.90?
Have you considered that Westminster may be trying to force more bikes off the road to attempt to get the public to rely on our already overcrowded shyte public transport system ?
In reality though, it's to make money.
Westminster did try this a few years ago, I remember the bike bays by St James underground sprouting numbers and a payment box. They put ground anchors in as well. But it reduced the space overall by about half. Then all the stuff vanished and sanity returned. Any info on how they will rip us off, i mean take the money.
Yes, I have a leaflet about it.
The gist is (from their website):
Charging for motorcycle parking
...these improvements do come at a cost, and the City of Westminster is seeking to introduce charging for motorcycle parking from Summer 2008. Charging for motorcyclists will be introduced zone by zone, starting in the West End and working outwards.
Motorcyclists will be charged £1.50 a day to park in any motorcycle bay across the city. There will no further charge if a motorcyclist moves to another motorcycle bay. A range of other permit options will also be available.
In zones A,B,C,D and H, motorcycle bays will be reserved for solo motorcycle use 24 hours a day. The only exceptions to this will be zones E, F and G (West End, St James, Marylebone, Bryanston and Dorset Square) where motorcycle bays will be reserved for solo motorcycle use only between 7am and 7pm Monday to Saturday. This is due to high demand for kerbside for all motorists in these areas.
The council will use Pay by Phone technology as a mechanism for delivering motorcycle parking charges.
There will also be options of a weekly charge of £5.00 and an annual fee of £150
The gist is (from their website):
Charging for motorcycle parking
...these improvements do come at a cost, and the City of Westminster is seeking to introduce charging for motorcycle parking from Summer 2008. Charging for motorcyclists will be introduced zone by zone, starting in the West End and working outwards.
Motorcyclists will be charged £1.50 a day to park in any motorcycle bay across the city. There will no further charge if a motorcyclist moves to another motorcycle bay. A range of other permit options will also be available.
In zones A,B,C,D and H, motorcycle bays will be reserved for solo motorcycle use 24 hours a day. The only exceptions to this will be zones E, F and G (West End, St James, Marylebone, Bryanston and Dorset Square) where motorcycle bays will be reserved for solo motorcycle use only between 7am and 7pm Monday to Saturday. This is due to high demand for kerbside for all motorists in these areas.
The council will use Pay by Phone technology as a mechanism for delivering motorcycle parking charges.
There will also be options of a weekly charge of £5.00 and an annual fee of £150
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