Council blasted for raking in £22MILLION in parking fines in a YEAR

A COUNCIL has been blasted for “grotesque” profiteering after it raked in £22million in parking fines in a year.

Lambeth Council in London has been accused of benefiting from low-traffic neighbourhoods (LTNs) after it handed out 183,192 charges in the past 12 months.

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Each fine is £120 but is halved to £65 if it is paid within 14 days.

That means the council could have made as much as £21,983,040 in revenue from the fines, The Telegraph reports.

LTNs contain roads which are closed to traffic in order to give priority to cyclists and pedestrians.

The aim is to decrease emissions from vehicles while also making it safer for non-drivers.

LTNs have proven to be controversial and critics say they increase congestion and pollution on surrounding and main roads where traffic is diverted.

Figures from the council, gained through a Freedom of Information request, showed that most fines were issued in Streatham, where 62,680 were handed out.

So far, £9,909,702 has been paid to the council while another £10,130,378 is outstanding.

A spokesman for One Lambeth, a campaign group which opposes LTNs said: “It’s an awful lot of money and it’s probably more than any other council has made.

“People are struggling to pay their bills, striking because of low wages, struggling with fuel costs, so to have these fines in this excessive climate is slightly grotesque.”

Lambeth council did not respond to a request for comment from the paper.

In June, Chris Jones, an events planner, was left fuming after he missed the start of wedding because Oxfordshire County Council introduced a new LTN.

The council introduced the LTN in east Oxford the previous month with locals saying it has caused disruption around Cowley Road.

In April, a mum was slapped with a £130 fine after she missed a “tiny sign” while taking her daughter to a birthday party.

Katie Pennell, of Sydenham in South London, said she drives along Dermody Road “all the time” – but failed to spot a sign warning it’s part of a ‘low-traffic neighbourhood’ scheme.

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