News from Westminster Labour

Westminster motorbike parking charge madness continues

“Free” parking offer an “empty and meaningless gesture”.

Labour Councillors say that Westminster Conservatives have finally conceded the argument on free parking for motorbike owners by offering free motorbike parking in Council-owned car parks. In addition, Labour say that the Council has lost all sense of fairness or financial reality by imposing a two-tier motorbike parking system which involves a charge to park motorbikes in the street yet parking in Council-owned car parks is free.

Labour Councillors have asked:

“If it is free to park in a staffed, secure and covered Council car park why do motorbike owners have to pay to park in the street which offers no security or protection from the weather?”

Councillor Paul Dimoldenberg, Leader of the Labour Group, said:

“The Council’s position is looking sillier with every day that passes. How can it be fair or make financial sense to offer free motorbike parking in expensively-run car parks and yet charge motorbike owners to park in the street?

“The fact of the matter is that very few motorbike owners want or need to park in a car park so the 900 bike spaces in Council car parks are rarely used. Offering them for free will not help the vast majority of motorbike users. Simply put, Westminster’s ‘offer’ of free parking in car parks is a totally empty and meaningless gesture aimed at trying to spin their way out of more bad publicity.”

Already, in response to a massive and unprecedented public protest from thousands of motorbike owners living and working in Westminster, Conservative Councillors have been forced to make huge concessions to try and win support for their controversial motorbike parking charges.

And protesters have forced the Council to reduce the cost of annual permit from £150 to £100 and the daily motor bike parking charge from £1.50p to £1. Now the Council has been forced to try and fill 900 empty motorbike parking bays in Council car parks by offering them free.

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