Westminster City Council to crack down on illegal parking in disabled bays

Westminster City Council, in partnership with Smart Parking, is set to unveil new technology which could eliminate the issue of inconsiderate drivers parking in disabled bays. New technology emerging out of Westminster’s successful bay sensors pilot in central London now means that disabled drivers can be issued with electronic permits, known as EPermits or RFID tags, which communicate with sensors in the road. Should a car without a tag park in a disabled bay with a sensor illegally, nearby traffic marshal
December 2, 2015 Read time: 2 mins

Westminster City Council, in partnership with 8034 Smart Parking, is set to unveil new technology which could eliminate the issue of inconsiderate drivers parking in disabled bays.

New technology emerging out of Westminster’s successful bay sensors pilot in central London now means that disabled drivers can be issued with electronic permits, known as EPermits or RFID tags, which communicate with sensors in the road.

Should a car without a tag park in a disabled bay with a sensor illegally, nearby traffic marshals will be alerted so that they could go to the site and ask the driver to move on. They also have the power to issue a fine as a last resort.

Councillor Heather Acton, Westminster City Council cabinet member for parking, said: “Parking in a disabled bay must be one of the most inconsiderate things a driver can do – yet we still see it very regularly in Westminster. We hope this new technology will put an end to this poor practice and help improve the day to day lives of disabled drivers in the city.”
 
Paul Gillespie, Smart Parking’s Group Chief Executive Officer added: “We are delighted to be collaborating with Westminster City Council and 1466 Transport for London in the launch of the EPermit pilot – a world first. This new technology will help to eliminate misuse of disabled parking bays broadening Westminster City Council’s commitment to providing fairer, easier, parking”.
 
The pilot project is set to last around eight weeks, and evaluation will be carried out before a decision is made on a citywide roll out.

Parking & Access Control UTC

Related Content

  • May 20, 2013
    Driver information sign project underway
    UK local authority Bath and North East Somerset Council is installing state-of-the-art traffic electronic messaging signs around the outskirts and within Bath to provide better travel information for drivers entering the city. The variable message signs (VMS) will provide a range of information including incidents, events, car park space availability, and encourage motorists to use Park and Ride – all from the Council’s existing traffic control room at the touch of a button. The improvements to driver infor
    Read More
  • June 7, 2016
    Zipcar launches fleet of plug-in hybrid electric cars in London
    Zipcar has partnered with Westminster City Council and Volkswagen UK to bring premium zero-emission driving to Londoners at an affordable price. Fifty Volkswagen Golf GTE plug-in hybrid electric cars are now available to Zipcar members, with 40 cars located in the City of Westminster and 10 additional cars elsewhere in London, such as Tower Bridge and Old Oak. To make this possible, Westminster City Council has installed new charging infrastructure in 40 of their car club parking bays. Westminster Cit
    Read More
  • October 28, 2016
    New solutions for catching texting drivers
    Many countries have laws prohibiting texting while driving but enforcement is proving difficult – David Crawford looks at some new approaches being tried by authorities. Finding definitive solutions – technological, regulatory and educational - to the potentially lethal practice of people driving while using mobile phones is proving elusive, while the stakes grow higher.
    Read More
  • March 12, 2013
    Enfield Council adopts cashless parking
    In a five-year contract with the London Borough of Enfield, Adaptis Solutions has rolled out its Dash Park, its cashless parking solution across fourteen car parks throughout borough. The introduction of Dash Park now gives parking customers the option to make payments by phone, text, mobile, web or through a smartphone application. The system provides motorists a fast, simple, and dependable alternative to pay and display machines already in operation at Enfield’s car parks. Enfield Council’s head of parki
    Read More

Highlighted Content