Green light for parking zone to expand... again

Part-time parking restrictions are being phased in for more than 70 streets just outside the existing Controlled Parking Zone (CPZ) to stop commuters using them as "park-and-ride" sites.

The new restrictions are being drawn up for 13 different parts of the city and will be introduced first on streets surrounding the S1 Controlled Parking Zone, which covers Marchmont, Sciennes and the Grange.

The new measures, which include 20-a-year parking permits and additional yellow lines, are being brought in to stop commuters taking up residents' spaces during the day.

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The "priority parking" for residents would operate for just a few hours a day each week between Mondays and Fridays.

Councillors backed the proposals at yesterday's transport committee meeting, meaning the measures are soon to be phased in across the city.

The first phase, which will be known as "south of S1", extends from Dalkeith Road in the east to Astley Ainslie Hospital in the west. It is likely to come into effect in September.

The move comes after 1200 people objected to earlier council plans to introduce a new CPZ in the area.

There will be no pay-and-display parking, but the new resident and visitor permits are designed to make it easier for drivers to park nearer their homes.

A council spokesman said: "Excessive commuter parking can be a source of real frustration and inconvenience for residents in some parts of the city.

"This innovative scheme has been identified as a more viable solution than that of extending the CPZ - a view shared by committee, local councillors, community councils and residents' groups alike."

The new priority areas include around 25 streets in the area known as "south of S1" and another 35 in and around Morningside.

There would also be eight streets included in the Shandon area of the city and four in Craigleith as well as Arboretum Road and Kinnear Road.

Councillor Lesley Hinds, the Labour transport spokeswoman, said: "There are areas of the city that have made requests for these areas and others that don't want them. There will be some areas where they will make a difference and others where we'll need to find a better balance."

Setting out the scheme to councillors last year, Marshall Poulton, the council's head of transport, said: "Since the area of the CPZ was extended during 2006 and 2007, it has become apparent that commuter parking has, at least in part, simply migrated to beyond the new boundaries of the CPZ.

"While there is evidence to suggest that the extent of commuter parking has reduced, there is no doubting the negative impact that such parking has on the general amenity of residential areas, as well as the quality of life of their residents."