Traffic – Breaking the Deadlock

Whitstable is desperately in need of a new parking plan. When your Labour councillors were elected in 2019 we promised one, but in two years it has been clear that there is very little appetite at Kent County Council for change. Kent County Council haven’t published a strategic review of traffic in our town since the late 1990s and when the did, they later reneged on the decision.

One of the things city councillors can do is control who parks where – installing residents parking and drawing yellow lines in problem areas to alleviate jams. As such local councillors are embarking on an online survey of residents in the Conservation area to explore their appetite for residents parking.

Residents parking isn’t perfect but it does act as a deterrent for visitors to park in quieter residential roads. This model (in place in Island Wall and Station Road) sees residents in a designated area pay a small fee per year (currently £70 a year) to ensure only residents can park for any substantial period of time (normally over 2 hours) on the road outside their house. It doesn’t guarantee a parking space but does ease congestion as second cars receive a lower priority in allocation of any permits and the number and price of guest tickets (under which holiday let tenants could park on street) can be regulated. If the number of people parking on the road drops then some people may feel able to give up expensive off street parking permits which have been targeted by this council for substantial increases in the past.

Last year councillors investigated residents parking in Clifton Road and Westcliff after resident’s contacted us. We carried out a door to door survey and ultimately concluded that there wasn’t a substantial amount of public support for the scheme there. The council will, quite rightly, only introduce the scheme in an area where upward of 75% of residents indicate that they are in favour. We are now turning our attention to see if there is interest in the conservation area between Cromwell Road and Harbour Street – this area has a real problem with parking and could be redesigned.

We don’t believe that because something is difficult we shouldn’t try to solve it. So now we need you help. You can:

1. Fill out our parking survey at www.parkinginwhitstable.com

2. Email us with your ideas for yellow lines to [email protected].gov.uk. You pop in for a chat with us at surgery on Friday 24th September, 9.30 – 12 at the Horsebridge or Thursday 7th October, 3-4.30 in the Umbrella Garden

3. Attend our public meeting on the issue on Tuesday 23rd November, 7.30 at Whitstable Umbrella. We aim to have representatives of Canterbury City Council, Kent County Council and the Highways Agency attending.