Predatory Parkers II

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War correspondent goes into battle against Ealing Council

 

A war correspondent with a major US television network found himself on the frontline in Ealing this week.

Only this time he wasn't reporting on the conflict - he was part of the action.

Mark Phillips, the CBS correspondent in London, made a presentation to Councillors on Tuesday February 3 alongside neighbours handing in a petition over the controversial Ealing Dean CPZ.

Residents argue that since the introduction of a new CPZ, the displacement of cars has turned the peaceful neighbourhood into a "war zone, as commuters cruise the streets, waiting to pounce when they spot a parking space".

They formed a pressure group, CPZ Action Now, and a website has been launched to help promote their campaign to be included in the Ealing Dean zone.

Like many of his neighbours, Mr Phillips says he has been dismayed by the impact of the Ealing Dean CPZ on neighbouring streets.

In response to the petition and an address by Mr Phillips, CPZ Action Now say they have been told by the Council that they are planning to review the Ealing Dean CPZ as “a priority”, and that if there is public support, changes will be made to the boundaries.

Cabinet Member for Regeneration and Transport, Councillor David Millican, said: "Ealing Council is committed to listening to the views of all residents. This CPZ was introduced after extensive consultation with residents across the whole area. Most people wanted the CPZ to be introduced. However the overwhelming number of residents, on the fringes, said they did not want a CPZ introduced, so their views were respected and they were left out of the scheme. Now it has been introduced they have changed their minds.

"Over the coming weeks we will consult formally with all residents and,additionally, we will consult on the possibility of extending the CPZ. Self evidently, if the CPZ were to be extended then the next group of residents, who originally said that they did not want a CPZ, might now be affected. Northfields Avenue business traders have already publicly said that they would do not want the CPZ extended.

"Balancing the wishes of a minority of residents against the majority is never easy.  However we are committed to respect the views of all residents when coming to our decision."

According to CPZ Action Now, the timeframe being suggested by Councillor Millican is summer/early autumn, but residents say they remain concerned about how long the whole process may actually take.

"I did notice that you used the phrase ‘after a year’ in reference to the time in which the Council, by its own rules, is required to review CPZs," said Mr Phillips in a letter to the Council following the meeting. "In fact, your literature – including the Q+A which accompanied the original consultation, commits the council to review each new CPZ ‘within one year’ of its implementation.

This Ealing Dean CPZ petition follows a similar displacement row in CPZ C and D, where residents are were frustrated at Thames Valley University students and staff stopping people parking near their homes during the summer months.

Paul Mathieu spearheaded the campaign: "In August 2006 the residents of Marlborough Road first contacted the Highways Department at the Council about the invasion of our streets during the summer months, by cars and vans taking advantage of the Zone D free-for-all parking between July 1 and September 30.

"It took the Department nine months to reply. In the meantime, those residents concerned about our inability to park in our own streets during the summer (a serious issue for the elderly and those with small children, an inconvenience for the rest) had canvassed our roads, and approached our ward councillors. The canvass showed that every household on Marlborough Road, and every household who could be contacted in Richmond Road, supported a proposal to extend the October-to-June parking controls to cover the summer months."

The C and D CPZ campaigners are hoping a consultation will take place shortly.

February 13, 2009