Westminster council in London has now introduced parking fees for all motorcycles in their bike bays. It’s £1.50 per day or £150 for a year. If this guaranteed you secure, available, bike parking this might be fair enough, but since it doesn’t is this just another stealth tax?
Typical Labour government, make money from nothing. Labour always do something half-arsed, charge stupid money for it, and then tell everyone how great they are because they’re making a difference when the only difference is raking in more cash. I can’t wait to see this government kicked out next year.
T509Speedy
Crap ain’t it. It’s still free here in Cheltenham. Surely it’s down to the individual councils? I reckon they should start charging pedestrians for clogging up the pavements. Have you tried walking through Westminster at lunchtime? Mental! They’d get more revenue. Stick turnstiles at the tubestations and pelican crossings. To use them costs 10p. Loadsamoney, that’d force more people to stay indoors.
Chewie
Tax all the southern scum, double tax for Charley Boorman look-a-likes on BMWs. Only queers and steers live in London and I don’t see many steers down there. Let the tax man cometh. Oh yes baby, let him come.
BigBlack
If they were serious about getting cars out of the capital they’d just pedestrianise the lot. So this isn’t something that’s going to be settled with reasoned arguments. Politicians only really care about votes and staying in power. Take a leaf out of the Rambler’s handbook and kick up a huge fuss; demos, petitions, emails to press and media, harangue the local councillors, whatever it takes to convince them to go pick on someone else. It works, but only if we stand together.
FLO
£1.50 a day would be a price worth paying, if the bays were secure. But they are about as safe as Gary Glitter at a nativity play. One of my colleagues at work had his (chained) bike lifted from a space off Horseferry Road in the middle of Westminster only a couple of months back. It is just another way of fleecing cash from the great unwashed. Unfortunately, I believe, BoJo’s hands were tied as this was announced by Red Ken. Still, I’d pay a lot more than that to see the back of that cleft. Bikes reduce congestion, and should be encouraged. This is not the way.
ninjasquaddie
All that’s needed for the parking fee to be acceptable is a solid bar at kerb level to chain your bike to. Not a big job for the council to undertake. Until this is done, the fee is unacceptable.
Alan Haskins
If that’s the case then surely bicycles will have to pay for their spots too,
or has this come about because people are leaving their cars at home and using public transport like the government are begging people to do, so therefore there’s a loss of revenue through car parking?
Sidekick
Yes, charge us to park in a secure bay, but free parking in unsecured bays. Also charge cars in a similar way, but make them pay more generally. More car bays should be given over to bike bays with security, so the bikes cover the cost of the lost bay plus hardware. Any driver/rider would willingly pay a little extra for security unless they are riding a knicked bike of course.
morepower
I live in Westminster and have not seen one single bike bay with updated security. I have seen a lot of parking tickets issued though... I’ve lived about a bit and Westminster are without a shadow of a doubt the most incompetent and crooked council I’ve ever known. I honestly don’t know how they get away with it, seriously. If someone lies on their job application and gets found out, they get sacked. How can a politician constantly lie so blatantly and get away with it?
jimbo777
Well it’s £1.50, how much do you pay to park your car and is that secure? Probably not. End of the day it’s the way things are changing so best get used to it. I don’t like it as much as the next man, but unless we do as the French do and stick together, block the ports off and demand change nothing will happen. But then again, give it another week and we will have all crawled back under our little stones and forgot all about it. Never mind, maybe one day the English will learn to stop stabbing each other in the back and stick together. Vive La France. We can call them frogs but they don’t take the shit we do.
Brian Field
We should be encouraged to use two wheeled transport in all cities, it would reduce congestion and polution. This is typical of our government who hide their main agenda behind green issues, which will always be ways to increase their coffers! Deffo a big stealth tax...
jimmyfarside
Result:
Yet another ridiculous stealth tax: 10
Paying to park is a good thing: 1
A fairly inevitable outcome. If they can get away with charging in one place they will get away with it everywhere, be warned. Paid bike parking is coming to a city near you...
