| In an
exclusive meeting arranged by Editor Alan Fisher, a Call Sign
reporter met face-to-face - some might say eyeball-to-eyeball - with
the very people who have responsibility for implementing Westminster
Council’s parking services and regulations and who to many,
represent the bane of our working lives. We were not allowed to take
photos. Parking problems…
Call Sign was given unrestricted
access to the very heart of Westminster’s parking control unit, the
CCTV centre, where row after row of computer monitors control the
Council’s 115 wireless and 120 fixed site cameras that vigilantly
watch that borough’s motorists’ every move - both by day and night.
We were somewhat taken aback to discover that there are only two
Smart car mobile patrols operating in the borough, because they seem
to have the ability to be all over the place - according to one
senior member of staff!
There is also a van with Automatic Number Plate Recognition (ANRR)
cameras on board which regularly finds uninsured / untaxed vehicles
or those with outstanding fines, being brazenly used on the streets.
Patrick Allen, Westminster’s Service Development Manager for
Parking Services, stressed the need for a constant balancing act
between the Council’s entire road user family - including
residents, shopkeepers and market traders as well as the Borough’s
many individual transient motorists. Dial-a-Cab have also had
several meetings. Patrick explained that when he meets them, every
interested group has their own agenda - often to the detriment of
other parties who hold opposing views to common road space problems
and that compromise within the terms of the Councils’ parking rules
can be difficult to achieve.
Call Sign pointed out that Dial-a-Cab drivers are just
doing their job, going about their daily business, aiding the
economy of the borough including the transporting of Westminster
residents to their hospital appointments. Patrick Allen accepted
that, but claimed that bias or exemptions towards a particular road
user group would be seen by others as being unfair and could lead to
an ‘open door’ of preference claims. Again he said that the
balancing act scenario played a vital part in the equation. It was
stressed to us that ‘rules were rules’ but that reasonableness and
common sense on both sides, with open lines of communication "…would
lead to greater understanding between our mutual interests of
keeping the Westminster streets moving and saving DaC drivers their
hard earned money!" It soon became clear to our reporter that any
rule changes would have to be of a political nature, rather than at
the remit of the Parking Team, who enforce the
regulations as they stand.
Call Sign was then told that the |
Call Sign meets Westminster’s CCTV parking team… |
camera operators and
on-street Parking Attendants allow the regulatory 2 minutes
for vehicles to stop before issuing a PCN, unless there is obvious
continued activitysuch as loading or unloading a wheelchair. Waiting
more than 2 minutes for a passenger to come out of a pick-up address
would probably attract a PCN. The fact that it is our job is
obviously not part of their equation.
They "advised" our drivers to check the local parking information
plate, which gives details of parking regulations peculiar to that
location. Of course, we know we aren’t supposed to stop, but we do
so as part of our work pattern. We were also advised to adhere to
the single / double yellow lines and the yellow kerbside markings
wherewaiting / loading is restricted. So as informative as the trip
was, so far as being of physical assistance, it was becoming as
useful as having a cough!
We then met Philip Sawyer, the CCTV Centre Manager.
His role is to ensure that things go according to plan in the camera
centre, overlooking the minute-by-minute proceedings of life on the
streets through the all-seeing camera monitors.
He demonstrated to Call Sign how once a camera
operator had issued a PCN, those details were then passed to another
operator sitting at yet another bank of monitors. All the details of
the ‘offence’ are carefully checked and verified in terms of
legality before the PCN is sent off. These checks include the
accuracy of the alleged offence, ownership details via the DVLA,
time stamp of the alleged offence and the 2-minute video clip,
including which photographs to include on the PCN and even down to
the size of the vehicle number plate as it appears on the paper copy
of the PCN! All these checks form the basis of the quality controls
that this second viewing allows and our reporter saw several PCNs
being cancelled by the Second Viewing operator, because of
discrepancies in the original image capture.
Yet despite these careful checks, Appeals and Challenges are a way
of life and are – says Patrick Allen - welcomed because they
highlight inconsistencies within the system and point out where - in
his words - additional training was required. Call Sign
readers may wish to interpret that comment in their own way, but it
was a genuine gesture to make the system the best it could be.
Even after a ticket has been issued, challenged or goes to |
Appeal, the video / details are
archived on the system for 30 days
after complete closure of the PCN, which may drag on for many
months. The Westminster City Council website gives full information
on parking controls and associated matters and several times during
our visit, this font of parking know-how was mentioned.
Moving offences (U-turns)…
Then we came to what they called Moving offences, such as
making banned ‘U’ turns and yellow box junction infringements. These
are also captured on CCTV and generate an instant ticket. The fact
that our cabs are designed to do U-turns was no excuse, according to
Philip Sawyer, who emphasised the signage prohibiting them. Our view
naturally differed. But of course we were there for a look round
rather than a discussion on policy changes – something that would
have to be taken up by persons higher than Call Sign!
Cameras can sometimes prove useful in providing evidence of
criminal activity, attacks on parking attendants (surely you are
pulling our plonker!) and temporary traffic jams, where foot patrols
can be sent to sort out local problems.
Patrick highlighted the chase for road space in high-density areas
such as Mayfair and Soho, where for example, chauffeur driven cars
wait, perhaps for many hours, for their captains of industry
to appear. This certainly deprives residents and other road users,
including DaC taxis, of vital road space to go about their business,
so it isn’t just the taxi trade that gets targeted.
During our visit and possibly of some embarrassment to our
reporter, a Dial-a-Cab taxi was spotted by a camera with the most
incredible clarity when honing in on it, stopping on a yellow line
in Duke of York Street SW1. The driver got out, returning to the cab
some 3.5 minutes later, his freshly made sandwich clasped in his
hand before driving off and unaware he was being observed! Given the
2-minute warning mentioned earlier, it was a very expensive
sandwich! Our asking that he be "let off" as a sign of goodwill fell
on deaf ears.
Call Sign would like to thank Kevin Goad, Patrick Allen,
Philip Sawyer and Maddy Findlay for their time and hospitality, in
what was an informative tour and honest, if somewhat one-sided,
exchange of views.
© Call sign Magazine MM8 |
