South London park to charge drivers for parking as council ignores 5,000-strong petition

Plans to introduce parking charges at a Bromley park have been approved despite over 5,000 residents opposing the scheme. Bromley Council's Community Services Scrutiny Committee nodded through the decision, with the charges described as a 'disaster' by a local athletics club, according to one councillor.

The change will see motorists having to pay to use the car park at Norman Park. The scheme was approved at a Bromley Council meeting on November 20 and came as part of a review of all parking charges across the borough.

Council officers said in their report that the car park has 266 spaces and the opportunity for further bays on the roadside. They added that the car park is currently maintained by the authority at a cost which is not being recovered.

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A petition asking the council to delay the parking charges at the park has received over 5,200 signatures. Karl Graham, who started the petition, said locals were worried that the fees would cause drivers to park on public roads in the surrounding area. He added that it could also affect the accessibility of the space for others.

He said: "Now more than ever, access to public spaces like Norman Park is incredibly important. It is not just a park but a lifeline for many in the community, from fitness enthusiasts to families who relish its beauty and serenity."

Council officers said in their report that the new charges would bring an additional £35,000 into the authority each year. Lib Dem Councillor Julie Ireland, representing the Bromley Town ward, said at the meeting that the space was a wonderful park and asked for the committee to reject the proposal. She said that Bromley Mencap, a charity supporting disabled residents, had told her the charges would greatly impact their clients.

Cllr Ireland said: "The roads around the park are already chock-a-block for half a mile around… The chair of the Blackheath and Bromley Harriers Athletic Club said the charging would be disastrous for them as a club."

Officers said at the meeting that the money to maintain Norman Park had to be subsidised through other means. Conservative Councillor Nicholas Bennett, Portfolio Holder for Transport, Highways and Road Safety, said the cost of using the car park would be less than that of a cup of coffee, and compared it to the fee residents faced when using leisure centres in the borough.

Cllr Bennett said at the meeting: "Regarding Norman Park, most local people walk there. The people parking are coming from a further distance. Why should Bromley taxpayers pay for the maintenance of that car park?"

The decision to add parking charges to Norman Park was approved with five councillors voting for the proposal, four against and one abstaining. Charging will be done using the RingGo system that is already in place for other car parks in the borough.

A similar scheme to add parking charges across the countryside estate by Surrey County Council in 2018 was scrapped after a major backlash. Fees to park at locations such as Newlands Corner and Chobham Common were introduced to reportedly improve the visitor experience of the sites.

However the authority was forced to cut the controversial changes in April 2020 after a residents' backlash, vandalism of the parking meters and the scheme not making as much money as expected. A petition from SurreyLive got so much support it forced a debate at the council. It was later revealed that Surrey County Council had only generated £61,000 in income from the charges after the first year against a projected total of £200,000.

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