Drivers feeling the squeeze on parking

MOTORISTS are feeling the squeeze on parking - with rising charges and fewer and smaller spaces, according to the RAC.

As many as four in five drivers have reported increasing parking charges in towns and cities.

And 67% of those drivers believed there was now less parking close to their town or city centre and that parking restrictions had become more stringent where they live.

Also 24% of the 1,526 motorists surveyed, said traffic wardens were now more active in their area and 22% said they had seen parking spaces that used to be free become charged for in the last 12 months.

The poll also found that 65% of motorists reported that even when they finally find a space to park, it was too small for today's breed of cars, many of which are wider than previous generations of vehicle because of the addition of side-impact protection features.

The RAC said that 67% of drivers who agreed that parking had become more expensive in the town centre had cut the amount of driving they do as a direct result of these increased parking charges.

It added that London motorists, in particular, had "felt the pain" of increased parking costs, with 59% finding high street parking was hitting their pocket more.

In addition, 41% of motorists believed that the local authority where they lived used the revenue from parking charges to subsidise other areas of non-motoring expenditure.

RAC technical director David Bizley said: "It's time for a reality check when it comes to parking in Britain.

"We have to find a happy medium between the desire of motorists to get to where they want to go, which our research shows is driven in part by inadequate public transport provision in many parts of the country, and the need to keep our towns and cities moving.

"Parking has always been an emotive issue for the nation's drivers - whether that's caused by driving around city centres endlessly to find an elusive space, or a neighbour mindlessly blocking your driveway."

By Peter Woodman, Press Association