Revealed: Where most parking fines are issued in Havering

Station Road in Harold Wood (Image: Archant)

It’s a question on the minds of many motorists – and now the Recorder can reveal which are the most ticketed streets in the borough.

In this financial year Corbets Tey Road in Upminster has seen parking fines issued almost twice as much as the next most targeted street – Station Road, Harold Wood.

The Upminster street has had 2,162 tickets so far in 2012/13 compared with 1,161 for Station Road.

In 2011/12, it was Station Road which topped the list of most fined streets with its namesake – Station Road, Gidea Park – in second place.

Cllr Brian Eagling (Residents’ Association, Harold Wood) said: “I think it’s despicable, especially what the CCTV car does. It sits and waits near Harold Wood Station to catch as many people as possible who are just dropping someone off or picking them up.

“What are you supposed to do when you go to pick up your mother with her bags? It’s absolutely scandalous.”

In November, Essex Farmers’ Market in Station Road, Upminster, which leads into Corbets Tey Road, announced that it was not returning to Upminster. It blamed factors including parking fines for traders and customers.

General manager Mike Allen said: “I’m not surprised that it is one of the most targeted areas.

“We were there for five years and it seemed to just get much worse. People kept telling us they had got ticketed.

“People pulling up for one minute to get cash out of a machine were targeted.”

But Cllr Barry Tebbutt, Cabinet Member for Streetcare, said: “To put things into perspective, despite being one of the largest boroughs in London, we actually issued the third lowest number of penalty charge notices, which says a lot.

“We’re not out to get people for no reason. We’ll only issue fines if people park illegally and are obstructing traffic or causing danger to themselves and others.

“This can be the case on busy roads and we are often asked by schools and residents themselves to visit these areas.”

He added: “It’s about making sure people are safe and the borough is kept moving at all times. In addition, all income from parking charges are reinvested back into making improvements in the borough. This could include our safer routes to school schemes, street cleaning or highways and lighting maintenance.”