Councils earn £511 million from parking

Just when you thought inflation was going down and things might get more affordable, councils are asking the government permission to increase the cost of parking fines.

Current legislation allows councils to charge motorists up to £130 in London and £70 outside the capital.

In addition to income from fixed penalty notices, councils  in London earn £4.80 an hour from motorists parking near Oxford Street and other popular central London locations. Outside London, motorists can expect to pay as much as £3.50 in popular tourist locations like Brighton.

Last year, Mike Penning the road safety minister, warned councils to stop treating motorists as an easy revenue earner. Councils are supposed to use their powers to improve traffic and prevent jams by controlling parking on their streets.

Councils are prohibited by law to use income from parking to improve their balance sheets. However, some councils allocate the revenue raised from parking for other transport projects.

Councils made a surplus of £511.6 million from fines last year. That was nearly a 5% increase on the previous year in 2010-11 of £489.4million, according to an analysis of local authority accounts made by the RAC foundation.

Have your say and tell us how much your council charges to park for an hour or for a fixed penalty notice.