Double parkers face fines

DRIVERS who double park could be hit with fines for the first time, under moves being called for by city transport bosses.

• Fire crews have abandoned their engines after being blocked by double parkers.

The city council is calling on the Scottish Government to decriminalise double parking, taking the issue out of the hands of the police and allowing parking attendants to ticket motorists who leave their vehicles in the road.

It comes as the fire service warned the practice was putting lives at risk by slowing down response times to emergency calls.

It follows attempts by West of Scotland MSP Ross Finnie to have drivers ticketed for parking on dropped kerbs or at the entrance to driveways, a campaign which is also being supported by the council.

Fire chiefs said crews had been forced to abandon their vehicle and walk to a recent incident after finding their path blocked by badly-parked cars.

Firefighters had to carry their equipment to the fire in Springvalley Terrace, Morningside, due to "totally unacceptable" double parking at the corner of the street and at several points along the roadway.

A spokeswoman said: "Double parking is an ongoing problem. It's something we've tried to highlight with the public, so anything that tackles it would be welcomed by the fire service and possibly the other emergency services."

At present, parking attendants are unable to hand out 60 tickets to drivers who have double parked, instead relying on the police to impound vehicles found to be causing an obstruction.

However, the council has long maintained the police are too busy to deal with the issue properly, arguing it should be passed to parking attendants.

Figures released by the police in December showed that more than 500 motorists had their vehicles seized in 2010 after double parking.

Officers ordered the vehicles to be uplifted because they were parked "dangerously" or causing an obstruction, with 65 confiscated in one month alone.

Police chiefs blasted the "ignorant" drivers who double park in the street and block emergency vehicles.

Owners have to pay a 150 removal fee after having their cars impounded, as well as a daily storage charge of 12.

Commenting on Mr Finnie's Bill, Councillor Gordon Mackenzie, the city's transport convener, said: "I welcome Ross Finnie's Bill, as our response demonstrates.

"If introduced, these new powers will allow us to provide better protection to residents, pedestrians and other road users, especially the emergency services, for whom the inconsiderate behaviour of some drivers is a real problem.

"We would go further and ask the Scottish Government to consider the issue of double parking, another long-standing problem in parts of Edinburgh. Allowing local authorities to enforce, as in the case in England, would also allow police to concentrate their resources on more serious offences."