Councillors told to list parking issues

Rother District Council’s Overview and Scrutiny Committee is to meet on Monday (March 20) as the debate continues over whether to take responsibility for parking enforcement away from police.

Officers from Rother have already met with East Sussex County Council (ESCC) and have begun detailing traffic problems around the district.

Now councillors have been asked to get involved and create their own assessments of their wards by March 31.

These observations will be sent to ESCC.

The information gathered will be used to correlate and collaborate with the evidence gathered by officers and ESCC Highways Stewards.

It is hoped ESCC will be able to present a business plan for CPE to Rother’s Overview and Scrutiny Committee meeting in July.

If Rother does decide to proceed with CPE, it would be required to carry out a formal public consultation with residents and members of town and parish councils.

An RDC spokesman said: “We do understand that illegal parking is an issue in some parts of the district.

“Parking enforcement in Rother is currently the responsibility of Sussex Police and introducing civil parking enforcement (CPE) would require us to work closely with East Sussex County Council, who would be responsible for enforcement of on-street parking.

“We are currently working with the county council to develop a business case for CPE for Rother, which will consider how this could work in practice.

“This will include consideration of the potential impact it could have, particularly on shoppers and visitors, as decriminalisation would have to apply to the entire district.

“This is a complex issue and it’s important that we take the time to fully understand the practicalities and the implications of CPE before asking members to consider such a scheme.”

Rother District Council’s Overview and Scrutiny Committee will meet at 5.30pm on Monday, March 20, at Bexhill Town Hall, London Road, Bexhill.

The meeting will be open for members of the public to attend.

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