Pavement parking has been described as an “unacceptable menace” as a new Bristol task force will look to London for options. Drivers parking on pavements affects many parts of the city, leaving pedestrians in some places forced to walk into the road.
Bristol City Council is exploring potential ways to tackle the issue of pavement parking and wider problems. A task and finish group, made of councillors on the transport policy committee, will come up with options for a parking strategy, taking inspiration from the London borough of Lambeth.
The transport policy committee agreed to set up the new task force on September 12, when Greens criticised a lack of action from the former Labour administration. Labour councillors backed setting up the new group, and called on the government to make changes nationwide.
Green Councillor Ed Plowden, chair of the committee, said: “There has been no holistic parking strategy since 2016. In 2019 the transport strategy was published and apparently then it was underway. That was five years ago and it hasn’t seen the light of day.
“In February 2024 a couple of recommendations were brought forward by the previous administration with very little evidence or very little review appearing to have taken place. During that period, we’ve seen Lambeth publish an excellent kerbside strategy, and it has inspired us to think about how we can look at this in a holistic way.”
Lambeth Council is aiming to turn a quarter of the space along the side of streets into places for trees, benches or bicycle storage. Before their strategy was launched, 94 per cent of kerbside space in the borough was taken up by parked cars, which the council said was unfair and disproportionate, given that three out of five households there don’t own a car.
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One key difference between Lambeth and Bristol however, is there is a blanket ban across pavement parking already in place in London, which was introduced 50 years ago. Lambeth’s strategy doesn’t specifically address the issue of drivers parking on pavements, apart from “ensuring pavements are clear and accessible”, although does mention scooters on pavements.
The former Conservative government consulted the public on banning pavement parking, but then didn’t take any action afterwards. The new Labour government has not yet publicly commented on any plans to introduce a ban. Councils already have the legal powers to ban pavement parking in certain areas, as Cardiff and Sheffield have done, but this is expensive.
Labour Councillor Kaz Self said: “We can all agree that pavement parking is a menace forcing pedestrians and wheelchair users into the road. It’s unacceptable. It’s not illegal to park on the pavement outside of London and Scotland, so let’s hope the new Labour government addresses that.
“We need to make sure the city’s accessible to all, with pavement maintenance and wheelchair access. But the task and finish group needs to consider the city in its entirety, because a one size fits all [approach] won’t be the best. The strategy needs to be wide-scoping and reflect the wishes of local communities.”
The task and finish group will be chaired by Green Cllr Rob Bryher, and will recommend policy changes to the committee after exploring the options for a “modern and holistic parking and kerbside strategy”. Green councillors have previously warned a ban might be costly to roll out.
Speaking after the meeting, Cllr Bryher said: “The issues of the way the kerbside is used and parking more generally were completely ignored by the previous Labour administration. There has been no holistic parking strategy since at least 2016, despite pavement parking, lack of cycle parking and electric vehicle charging, and the need for better managed parking being major issues for residents.
“We will work cross-party to ensure that Bristol does more to make pavements accessible for pedestrians, wheelchair users and those with buggies and prams, and create streets that are healthy, neighbourly and have more mobility options for residents.”