Archived parking news
This page contains articles previously published on the Latest Parking News page which have been moved to allow for current articles. Some articles on this page have been summarised since their publication.
- October 2009 - Emissions based parking charges come into effect
- September 2009 - North East Richmond (N) controlled parking zone extended
- August 2009 - Emissions based parking charges announced
- August 2009 – Council adjusts emissions bands for parking permits to bring in line with the DVLA
- May 2009 - Orleans (S1) controlled parking zone introduced
- April 2009 - New emissions based parking charges approved
- April 2009 - Parking permit changes
- March 2009 - Richmond introduces RingGo cashless parking
- February 2009 - Car club parking introduced
- January 2009 - Cabinet approves parking initiatives
October 2009 - Emissions based parking charges come into effect
From 1 October 2009, the tariffs in all car parks and at on-street pay and display bays within the borough will be based on vehicle emissions.
In addition, two initiatives to help local businesses come into effect - Thursday afternoon special parking charges and 20-20 parking charges.
Full details of the new schemes can be found in the Order which can be downloaded here
(pdf, 118KB).
Emissions based charges
Following the successful implementation of emissions based charges for parking permits in 2007, the Council has now introduced vehicle emissions based charges for parking on street and in car parks*.
The basic principle of the scheme is that all standard tariffs will increase by 25% from their current rate, and drivers with less polluting vehicles will be able to qualify for medium or low tariffs depending on the level of vehicle emissions.
The following table summarises these changes and vehicle ranges
| Parking charge tier | Variation from pre-30/09/2009 tariffs | Vehicles registered before 28/02/2001 | Vehicles registered after 01/03/2001 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Standard | + 25% | Cylinder capacities of 2001cc and above | CO2 emissions of 186g/Km or above |
| Medium | No change | Cylinder capacities of between 1301cc and 2000cc | CO2 emissions between 121g/Km and 185g/Km |
| Low | - 50% | Cylinder capacities of 1300cc or less | CO2 emissions of 120g/Km or less |
Drivers wishing to pay the medium or low tariffs will need to use a RichmondCard to pay for parking, or use the RingGo mobile phone payment system.
Information on the tariffs can be found on the Car parks and Controlled Parking Zones times and maps pages.
* The multi-storey car parks at Arragon Road, Twickenham and Paradise Road, Richmond will be included in the scheme at a later date.
Thursday afternoon special parking charges
In all car parks (except Kew Gardens Station forecourt) vehicles who enter and park between 3pm and 6:30pm on any Thursday can park without any time limit for the day. In addition there is a maximum tariff of
| Parking charge tier | Special parking charge |
|---|---|
| Standard | £1.50 maximum charge |
| Medium or Low | £1.00 maximum charge |
These charges will not apply for people who park before 3pm, or for car parks which do not operate on Thursdays.
20-20 parking
At all on-street pay and display bays (except Upper Teddington Road, Hampton Wick), and at the Kew Gardens Station forecourt there will be a maximum charge of 20p for a stay of 20 minutes or less. This is also discounted for more environmentally friendly vehicles
| Parking charge tier | Maximum stay | Special parking charge |
|---|---|---|
| Standard | 20 minutes | 20p |
| Medium or Low | 20 minutes | 10p |
This article was last updated 1 October 2009, and was archived 30 September 2010.
September 2009 - North East Richmond (N) controlled parking zone extended
From Monday 21 September 2009 the North East Richmond controlled parking zone will include Sheendale Road, Dee Road, Crown Terrace and Victoria Villas. The zone operates between 10:00am and 4:30pm Monday to Saturday.
Warning notices will be issued to vehicles parked in contravention from Monday 21 September 2009 until Wednesday 30 September 2009, with Penalty Charge Notices being issued to vehicles found parking illegally from Thursday 1 October.
For more information, including a map and how to obtain parking permits, please see the Controlled parking zone changes page.
This article was posted on 11 September 2009, and was archived 30 September 2010.
August 2009 - Emissions based parking charges announced
Download a copy of the CO2 Emissions Based Parking in Richmond upon Thames leafle(pdf, 268KB)t.
In August 2009 the Council announced the introduction of CO2 emissions based parking charges throughout the borough from 1 October 2009.
These charges will apply when parking at Pay and Display bays on-street, and within car parks.
Drivers can apply for a RichmondCard immediately which will store details of the vehicle and when put in a parking meter after 1 October 2009 will adjust the tariff based on the vehicle emissions or cylinder capacity. The card can also be used to store a pre-payment meaning that drivers do not have to carry change.
The RingGo system will also be updated so that all vehicles registered with them will have the tariff automatically adjusted based on the vehicle emissions or cylinder capacity.
To support local businesses two additional initiatives were announced, '20:20' parking and Thursday afternoon parking.
This article was last updated 6 October 2009, and was archived 30 September 2010.
August 2009 – Council adjusts emissions bands for parking permits to bring in line with the DVLA
In April 2009 the Council updated its parking permits charging scheme to increase the number of emissions bands for vehicles registered on or after 1 March 2001 from seven (A to G) to thirteen (A to M), in line with the bands proposed by the Chancellor in his budget statement in March 2008.
Following the implementation by the DVLA in May 2009 of the new bands it became apparent that the ranges of CO2 emissions had been adjusted in the budget of 2009 and that the Council was no longer in line with the DVLA.
From 1 September 2009 the Council will be rectifying this anomaly.
The change will affect any new permits starting from 1 September 2009 where the vehicle was registered on or after 1 March 2001, and which has engine CO2 emissions of between 161 and 165 or between 181 and 185g/Km. These vehicles will now fall into Band G and Band I respectively and permits will therefore be cheaper. The Council will contact any residents with permits starting between 1 April and 31 August 2009 and whose banding will be affected to arrange a refund of the difference in charges.
More information can be found on the ‘Vehicle banding for car parking permits’ page. For any enquiries, please email Parking Services at parking@richmond.gov.uk.
This article was posted on 10 August 2009, and was archived 30 September 2010.
May 2009 - Orleans (S1) controlled parking zone introduced
From Monday 18 May a new controlled parking zone has been introduced in Twickenham encompassing Chapel Road, Montpelier Row and parts of Orleans Road and Richmond Road.
The Orleans (S1) zone has been brought in to prevent parking problems due to the adjacent Orleans House for local residents.
The zone will run between 10:00am and 4:30pm Monday to Sunday between April and October; and Monday to Friday between November and March.
Warning notices will be issued to vehicles parked in contravention until 31 May 2009, after which 'live' penalty charge notices will be issued.
More information can be found in the Controlled parking zones pages.
This article was last updated on 18 May 2009, and was archived 30 September 2010.
April 2009 - New emissions based parking charges approved
At the Council's Cabinet meeting on 27 April 2009, the results of the consulation on extending emissions based charging for parking was discussed and agreed. The proposal was to introduce charge 'banding' for parking at pay and display meters on street and in car parks, similar to the scheme already in place for car parking permits.
Vehicle owners will be able to apply for a 'RichmondCard' which will hold basic details on the vehicle and which band it falls into. When used at one of the Parkeon pay and display machines, the machine will automatically adjust the tariff accordingly.
The actual variations are as follows:
| CO2 g/Km | DVLA Banding from May 2009 | Tariff Level +/- Over Existing Charge |
|---|---|---|
| Up to 100 | A | -50% |
| 101-110 | B | -50% |
| 111-120 | C | -50% |
| 121-130 | D | No change |
| 131-140 | E | No change |
| 141-150 | F | No change |
| 151-160 | G | No change |
| 161-170 | H | No change |
| 171-180 | I | No change |
| 181-200 | J | +25% |
| 201-225 | K | +25% |
| 225-255 | L | +25% |
| Over 255 | M | +25% |
| Engine Size | Tariff Level +/- Over Existing Charge |
|---|---|
| Equal to or less than 1300cc | -50% |
| 1301-2000cc | No change |
| Above 2000cc | +25% |
The default price on parking meters will be at the +25% rate so people with vehicles in the 'No change' bands will still need to use a RichmondCard to qualify for the existing tariffs.
Anybody wishing to park within the borough will be able to apply for the RichmondCard, not just local residents and businesses.
In addition schemes were agreed to prevent any potential negative impact on local businesses, i.e.
- Free parking trial in all borough car parks on the 25 May Bank Holiday
- Reduced charges in borough car parks (excluding the multi-storey car parks already offering evening rates) for key shopping hours
- Introduction of a 'short stay' tariff on all on-street parking bays to encourage a high turnover of vehicles at shopping parades.
Full details on the proposals and results of the consultation can be found on the 27 April Cabinet meeting.
This article was last updated 22 June 2009, and was archived 30 September 2010.
April 2009 - Parking permit changes
From 1 April 2009 the bands used for parking permit pricing will be changing.
The bands based on engine CO2 emissions for vehicles first registered on or after 1 March 2001 will increase from seven to thirteen, in other words, from A-G to A-M.
The ranges based on cylinder capacity for vehicles first registered on or before 28 February 2001 will not be changing other than the removal of references to 'Band' as these will no longer be consistent for pricing.
These changes will bring the banding used by London Borough of Richmond upon Thames for parking permit charges in line with those used by the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency for vehicle licensing. The change was agreed by the Councils' Cabinet in January 2009 as part of a range of initiatives for parking within the borough.
Most permit holders will not be charged any extra for parking permits under the new banding arrangements as the additional bands are formed by 'splitting' the existing bands. Only vehicles with engine CO2 emissions of 160g/km to 165g/km and 180g/km to 185g/km will be affected, and will go up in pricing category.
In addition to new CO2 bands, the Council will also be updating the back-office system used for parking permit issue and administration. The new system will be 'Permit Gateway' supplied by Imperial Civil Enforcement Solutions. Permit Gateway has better functionality for handling banded permit pricing and other administration used by Richmond Council. It will also open the door to the provision of more services online.
Whilst these changes are being implemented we are expecting that there will be some disruption to services as Parking Shop staff become familiar with the new systems and any issues are resolved.
Resident parking permit holders with permits expiring 31 March 2009 have been advised by post that if they renew:
- a) on or before 31 March 2009, that they will be issued with a new permit as normal
- b) on or after 1 April 2009, that the processing of their permit may be delayed, but in the meantime they can still use their existing permit for parking until 30 April 2009.
Other permits printed at the time of issue (for example. business permits, operational permits, some season tickets) may also be delayed, as well as replacements for resident parking permits. Pre-printed permits (visitor permit books, traders permits, and parking vouchers) will be unaffected and available as normal.
More information on the new vehicle banding.
This article was last updated on 18 March 2009, and was archived 30 September 2010.
March 2009 - Richmond introduces RingGo cashless parking
On Monday 9 March 2009 the RingGo cashless parking system goes live within the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames.
The system lets drivers pay for parking using a mobile phone and credit/debit card instead of paying at a pay and display meter. In addition drivers can 'top up' their parking time up to the maximum allowed at the parking bay from wherever they are.
More information on the RingGo system can be found on the RingGo cashless parking page.
This article was last updated 9 March 2009, and was archived on 30 September 2010.
February 2009 - Car club parking introduced
From February 2009 the council are putting in parking bays specifically for Car Club vehicles.
More information can be found on the Car Clubs page.
This article was last updated 9 March 2009, and was archived on 30 September 2010.
January 2009 - Cabinet approves parking iniatives
At the Councils cabinet meeting on 19 January 2009 a number of parking initiatives were approved, including
- Keeping the current baseline cost of car parking permits
- Changing the permit price for Vicarage Road (zone M1) and Ferry Road (zone Z2) to be in line with other zone with the same operational hours, i.e. bringing the baseline cost up from £75 to £100
- Re-banding car parking permits in line with the revised bands proposed by the DVLA
- Increasing car park charging hours for some car parks
- Withdrawing Voucher Parking
- Increasing parking services accessibility by replacing the Parking Shop with online, telephone and Civic Centre based services
- The introduction of mobile phone parking and a 'Richmond Smart Card'
- The go-ahead to consult on introducing CO2 based charges in car parks.
Click here to open a copy of the Fees and Charges 2009/10 – Parking Charges and Payment Facilities report approved by Cabinet.
This article was last updated 9 March 2009, and was archived 13 January 2010.
Richmond council is investing £1.6 million to install over 300 on-street pay and display machines to replace the existing equipment.
The current equipment has been in service for up to 15 years in some cases and has reached the end of its useful live span. Faults not only inconvenience drivers but are also expensive and sometimes impossible to repair.
After a proper evaluation of the situation the Council decided to phase out the existing multi-bay meters, lollipop meters and the pay and display machines starting early 2008.
The machines are being replaced with Strada Rapide pay and display machines manufactured by Parkeon. These have a better design, modern technology and enhanced capability, specifically
- Solar power
- High level of tamper resistance
- Payment by cash and card
- User-friendly, interactive and easy to use
- Disability Discrimination Act compliant
- A remote fault reporting and data management system also aids better planning, monitoring and control of the machines.
The phasing out of the multi-bay and lollipop meters is near completion. It is projected that multi-bay meters will all be phased out by the end of October, with remaining lollipop meters replaced shortly after. The third phase of implementation (to replace pay and display machines) has commenced and is on target to be completed by the 31st of December 2008.
For more information please see the Parking meters page.
This article was last updated 15 October 2008, and was archived 13 January 2010.