Executive Report Report of Head of Operational Services Author: Kevin McKee Tel: 01483 444530 Email: kevin.mckee@guildford.gov.uk Lead Councillor responsible: James Palmer Tel: 07919362404 Email: james.palmer@guildford.gov.uk Date: 3 January 2013 Recommendation to Executive The Executive is asked to: Parking Business Plan 2013-14 (1) approve the programme of works set out in paragraph 3.14 of this report, such works to be financed from the car parks maintenance reserve; (2) authorise the Head of Operational Services, in consultation with the Lead Councillor, and with the agreement of Surrey County Council, to offer a free Saturday park and ride service at suitable and appropriate times of the year when most likely to offer the maximum support to the town centre economy; (3) implement the following changes: (i) increase the Monday to Saturday 8.00am to 6.00pm tariff in the short-stay car parks listed in appendix 6 from 1.10 to 1.20 per hour or part hour, (ii) increase garage rents by three per cent, (iii) increase the contract parking charge by three per cent and (iv) increase season tickets charges by three per cent the change in (i) to be implemented on 8 April 2013 and changes (ii),(iii) and (iv) to be introduced on 1 April 2013, (4) amend the off- street parking order to change the name of Black Horse House Car Park to Connaught House Car Park and change the provisions to allow only contract parking in that car park seven days a week. (5) undertake the necessary legal process to give effect to the changes in the offstreet parking order described in recommendations (3) and (4). Reason(s) for Recommendation: To enable the car parks to continue to operate safely and to a high standard and to meet the aims of the parking strategy. 1
1. Purpose of Report 1.1 This report is an annual report from the parking service to update the Executive on a range of key issues related to car parks. It proposes work to be funded from the car park maintenance reserve and proposes new charging tariffs for 2013-14. 2. Strategic Framework 2.1 The service helps support a dynamic economy by providing vital access to the town for workers, visitors and residents. It also helps create a sustainable environment by regulating the way vehicles park and helping to ease congestion. 3. Background 3.1 Appendix 1 of this report contains a summary of the joint parking strategy agreed between the Borough Council and County Council in 2003. Review of parking needs 3.2 In the 2003 parking strategy there was a simple assumption that the current amount of off-street parking should be maintained. However, with plans to increase the amount of retail floor space and other development taking place, the Council has commissioned Steer Davies Gleave, to look at how much parking will be needed to support the likely developments (Stage 1) and how it could be provided (Stage 2). We expected to be able to report the findings to the Executive by March 2013. Performance Information 3.3 The financial information in Appendix 2 shows that the service is currently on course to exceed the outturn estimate by around three per cent and keep expenditure within budget. There is a difference of around 300,000 in premises-related costs, which equates to an increase in business rates and the fact that there was a one-off electricity credit in 2011-12 which effectively reduced the costs for that year. The estimate for 2012-13 allowed for a reduction in contract parking income as a result of the anticipated closure of the car parks on the College and Bellerby Theatre site. However both these sites are still operating and the Council is still benefiting from income from these sites. 3.4 The car park data provided in Appendix 3 shows a slight increase in the number of users in the car parks between 2010-11 and 2011-12. However the year 2011-12 includes 53 weeks whereas 2010-11 had 52 weeks and if this is allowed for, the average number of users per week is virtually the same. Tickets Sold 2010-11 (52 weeks) 2011-12 (53 weeks) In the year 3,295,433 3,352,018 Average per week 63,374 63,246 2
3.5 The introduction of new pay on foot equipment that permitted payment by credit card could be a contributory factor to a five per cent increase in the use of Castle Car Park between 2010-11 and 2011-12. Last month 22 per cent of users of the pay-on-foot car parks paid using a card rather than cash. Bedford Road Multi- Storey Car Park experienced a four per cent drop in the same period and this is likely to be due to the refurbishment of the Friary Shopping Centre during 2011. Safer Car Parks 3.6 The service holds 26 Safer Parking awards which cover all the publicly available car parks in the town centre except for the relatively newly-opened G Live Car Park. This site will be entered for the assessment this year. The awards show the car parks conform to the high standards set by the Association of Chief Police Officers and the British Parking Association for safety and crimeprevention. Major Projects Funded from the Car Park Maintenance Reserve Bedford Road Multi-Storey Car Park Deep Clean 3.7 In the summer of 2012 Bedford Road Multi-Storey Car Park had a deep clean and the pedestrian ramp leading to the Friary Shopping Centre was redecorated. Electrical Work and Re-lighting of Bedford Road Multi-Storey Car Park 3.8 Design work has been completed for new lighting in Bedford Road Multi-Storey Car Park based on LED fittings, which use considerably less energy than conventional lighting. Tendering will start shortly with the work expected to be complete in the early part of 2013. Lighting and Repair Work at Leapale Road Multi-Storey Car Park 3.9 Leapale Road Multi-Storey Car Park is within the area being considered for the North Street Development. The work carried out on the car park has therefore been scaled back to include only essential work needed to keep the car park operating to a reasonable standard. Proposals put forward and agreed in the business plan for 2012-13 to apply a protective deck have been put on hold. The replacement of the lighting and repairs to the surface will go ahead. Replacing and Networking pay and display machines 3.10 Tenders have been issued to five major suppliers under a framework agreement to provide new pay and display machines. The new machines will send information back to our control room and provide much better management information. The new machines will also identify if a problem occurs and highlight this to the control room so an officer or engineer can be sent to effect repairs immediately. This will provide a better service for the public and protect the Council s revenue stream. 3
Pay-by-Phone 3.11 There are many pay-by-phone systems in operation which allow motorists to register with the provider and pay for their parking over the phone. This removes the need for motorists to carry the correct change to pay for their stay. It also helps them by sending texts when their time is about to run out and, if appropriate, enables them to make further payment. The user pays the provider for the service by paying a convenience charge which is usually 20p per transaction. 3.12 The County Council, with assistance from our officers, has agreed a framework contract which can be used by any council in Surrey to obtain pay by phone services for on-street or off-street parking. The framework provides the benefit of scale and consistency for users across Surrey and the convenience charge will be only 10p. The provider has agreed to absorb all credit and debit card handling fees so after an initial set-up cost for signs, the service is provided at no cost to the Council and at a very competitive rate for the user. We plan to trial the service in a number of pay and display car parks early in 2013. New projects from the Car Park Maintenance Reserve 3.13 The Car Park Maintenance Reserve (CPMR) was established in 2006-07 to help pay for major items of expenditure which occur in the multi-storey car parks at a set frequency. The nature of the work and the planned frequencies are set out below: Decorating every 5 years Applying protective deck surfaces every 12 years Replacing lighting every 12 years Electrical re-wiring every 24 years Replacing pay-on-foot equipment every 10 years 3.14 The reserve can also be used to fund other maintenance needs. It is recommended that the Executive agrees to fund the following works from the car park maintenance reserve: (i) repair and rebuild the access road to Guildford Park Car Park at an estimated cost of 50,000, (ii) repair and rebuild the access road to York Road Multi-Storey car park at an estimated cost of 30,000, (iii) repair and resurface North Street Car Park at an estimated cost of 30,000. The County Council are due to resurface the carriageway in North Street in January 2013 and it would be more efficient to do both the highway and the car park at the same time. If agreed, this funding needs to be committed in January 2013, (iv) decoration of the internal walls and ceilings in Castle Car Park at an estimated cost of 295,200, (v) the replacement of two lifts serving the Bedford Road Multi-Storey Car Park and Onslow House. It has been suggested by officers that the parking service and housing service share the cost equally and the funds 4
(vi) (vii) required from the Car Park Maintenance Reserve are estimated at 60,000, replacement of the collapsing retaining wall at Bright Hill at an estimated cost of 321,000 and drainage repairs and replacement of damaged Tespa cladding panels at Bedford Road Multi-Storey Car Park and Onslow House at an estimated net cost of 22,000. The schemes that are predominantly repair and maintenance will be accounted for as revenue, the others as capital. Detailed information on each of the above is provided in a similar format to that used for the General Fund capital programme, in Appendix 7. 3.15 Appendix 8 shows the estimated contributions into the Car Park Maintenance Reserve and the planned work to be funded from the reserve. The work after 2013-14 is scheduled according to the frequencies set out in paragraph 3.13 but the need for it to be carried out is reviewed on an annual basis and so is subject to change. The total amount of the schemes proposed for funding from the reserve in 2013-14 is 2.325 million, of which 808,000 relates to the new schemes proposed above. We estimate that the reserve will have a balance of 941,000 after all the work proposed in this report and the current work being undertaken is completed. Promotion of Guildford and use of Park and Ride 3.16 Guildford s car parks have a high utilisation rate and at peak times demand exceeds capacity. However on Saturdays, even at peak times, busiest shopping day, there is normally unused space at Artington and Merrow park and ride sites. Encouraging greater use of park and ride by shoppers will help boost footfall in the town centre without adding to congestion. 3.17 It is therefore recommended that the Executive agree for the Head of Operational Services in conjunction with the Lead Councillor to consider offering free park and ride for shoppers and other visitors on a number of Saturdays during the year. If the Executive agrees to such a promotion, the timing would be discussed with retail organisations and Elevate Guildford to establish the most effective time to support the local town centre economy. 3.18 The County Council are responsible for the bus service to the park and ride sites and they would need to agree. County Council officers have suggested that they would agree to this type of proposal if the average fare revenue from the two sites on a Saturday, around 950, was covered by us. On-Street Agency Agreement 3.19 We have been carrying out on-street parking management in Waverley since April 2011. We have recently received a draft five-year agency agreement from the County Council to cover on-street work in Guildford and Waverley and this is intended to replace the existing agreement which expires on 31 December 2012. The details will be presented to the Executive at the first opportunity but it has been necessary to put in place an extension to the existing agreement until 31 March 2013. The offer of an extension was not made in time for the matter to 5
be put before the Executive and in order to allow the service to continue it was necessary for the Chief Executive to authorise it under the urgency provisions set out in delegated power 23 in the scheme of delegation to officers. Proposals for Tariff Changes for 2013-14 3.20 Tariffs in car parks are one of the main mechanisms for affecting motorists behaviour and are reviewed every year as part of the business planning process. Workers who use car parks regularly are usually the first group of car park users to arrive in the morning and the strategy is to encourage them to use the outer long-stay car parks or park and ride so the most convenient space in the centre of the town is available for shoppers and other visitors. 3.21 Workers are also the most sensitive to tariffs as they use the car parks many days a week and stay for long periods of time. Typically a worker will stay in a car park nine hours a day over five days a week making 45 hours of parking per week. For shoppers and other visitors the length of time they stay and how often they visit will vary but usually it will not be more than two or three hours a week. 3.22 The aim of the parking strategy is to deter workers from using the most central short-stay car parks so that the space is available for shoppers and other visitors to the town. This is done by maintaining short-stay parking at a price that will deter long-stay parking but not affect short-stay usage. Workers and other long stay users are encouraged to use the long stay car parks or park and ride. There are three main long-stay car parks: Farnham Road, York Road and Guildford Park which are provided for workers and other long-stay users. 3.23 A review of the usage shows the long-stay car parks are well used but are not over capacity and so it is not recommended to alter the long-stay tariffs. 3.24 However there are always long-stay users who will park in the short-stay car parks and the latest review showed that around a third of the time, space occupied in key short-stay car parks is taken up by long-stay users. Last April the cost of parking in the most central short stay car parks was increased from 1.10 to 1.20 Monday to Saturday 8.00am to 6.00pm. The Executive is recommended to increase the tariff in the remaining short stay car parks from 1.10 to 1.20 on Monday to Saturday 8.00am to 6.00pm excluding Boxing Day. A full list of the car parks is set out in Appendix 6. 3.25 It is also recommended that garages, season tickets and contract parking are increased by three per cent. Demand for all these facilities is steady and the increase will help keep up with inflation. 3.26 The estimated increase in income for the financial year 2013-14 from the shortstay tariff change is 230,700, from the garages 3,400, from the contract parking 15,900 and from season tickets 21,400. The estimated total increase in income as a result of all these proposals is 271,400. 3.27 The income from car parks is an important factor in the Council s overall budget and the business plan is presented to the Executive prior to the Council agreeing its budget for the following financial year. The additional income from the 6
recommendations in this report is included in the outline budget and any reduction in these increases will need to be made up. Changes to Parking Stock 3.28 The car park under Connaught House (formerly Black Horse House) shown in Appendix 5 has been used by the Council for contract parking on weekdays and pay and display at weekends. During the works on the Radisson Hotel the entrance to the car park has been narrowed to the extent that it is not regarded as practical or safe to allow regular short-stay parking as this requires a two-way flow of traffic. It is therefore recommended to change the car park into a contract car park seven days a week. It is also proposed to rename it Connaught House Car Park rather than Black Horse House. 4. Customer and Community Scrutiny Committee 4.1 The proposals in this report were considered by the Customer and Community Scrutiny Committee on 10 December 2012 and no major concerns were raised. 5. Financial Implications 5.1 The financial implications are provided in the body of the report. It recommends that new schemes totalling an estimated 808,000 are financed from the repairs and maintenance reserve bringing the estimated total cost of schemes to be financed form the reserve in 2013-14 to 2.325 million. 5.2 The report also recommends adjustments to the tariffs which, it is estimated, will increase income by 271,400. This additional income has been included in the outline budget for 2013-14. 6. Legal Implications 6.1 Recommendations (3) and (4) require an amendment to the Guildford Off-Street Parking Order which will need to follow the relevant statutory processes. The proposed change to the short stay tariff in recommendation (3) has to be advertised by way of a notice published in a local newspaper and displayed at the car parks at least 21 days before the change takes effect, so people are made aware. The proposed change to the car park arrangements in Black Horse House must be dealt with by varying the order. The proposed variation must also be advertised in a local newspaper and at the car park and must allow a period of 21 days for objections to be made. Any objections that are received and cannot be resolved will need to be reported back to the Executive for consideration at a subsequent meeting before the amendment to the order can be made. 7. Human Resource Implications 7.1 In the unlikely event that the agreement for management of on-street parking on behalf of the County Council is not renewed, there would be a significant reduction in the work of the parking service. At that point we would consider whether TUPE applied in the particular circumstances. If it did then staff would be 7
TUPE transferred to the new provider, if not we would consult on redundancies to balance the size of the workforce with the volume of work. 8. Conclusion 8.1 There is considerable investment taking place to maintain and improve the parking stock. The service continues to perform very well with high usage despite the economic conditions. It is recommended to adjust the short-stay tariff to ensure space is available for shoppers and other visitors and to increase garage, season tickets and contract parking by three per cent. 9. Background Papers None 10. Appendices Appendix 1 - Summary of the Joint Parking Strategy 2003 Appendix 2 - Financial Information on 2011-12 outturns and 2012-13 projections Appendix 3 - Performance Data on car parks and penalty charge notices Appendix 4 - Summary of parking charges in other towns and centres Appendix 5 - Extract from the Guildford Off-Street Parking Order showing Black Horse House Car Park Appendix 6 Details of the car parks included in the tariff changes in recommendation 2 Appendix 7 Further details of the work proposed to be funded from the car park maintenance reserve Appendix 8 Financial information relating to the car park maintenance reserve. 8