Takeley and Little Canfield parking consultation

If you live in Takeley or Little Canfield this is your chance to give us your views on some proposed options for dealing with airport-related parking.
 

About the consultation

We know many residents who live in Takeley and Little Canfield are concerned about people misusing residential streets to park for the airport.

There is no easy solution. It is not possible to stop people parking in streets that do not have parking restrictions.

But, if parking restrictions are introduced, they will apply to everyone, not just those suspected of parking for the airport. This will include:

• residents
• visitors
• delivery vehicles
• airport and commuter parkers

We are asking for your feedback to see if a solution to airport parking can be found.
 

Background and options

We have looked at the issues and at what other airports have put in place to deal with similar problems.

Issues

The parking problem in Takeley and Little Canfield is partly due to airport-related parking.

As Stansted Airport grows parking issues are likely to get worse.

Existing parking restrictions are in place on some roads, but other roads have no controls.

If new parking restrictions are brought in, they will apply to everyone.

Enforcing any new restrictions can be expensive.

Police can investigate reports of dangerous parking but they have limited resources to do so.

How other airports deal with this issue

We have commissioned a parking options study to look at what other airports in the UK do.

Stansted is the 4th busiest airport in the UK and has recently announced major growth plans for the next 5 years.

The study looked at Gatwick, Luton, Bristol and Manchester airports. Stansted has very similar numbers of passengers to Manchester, similar travel patterns to Luton, but like Bristol, is in a more rural area.

• Around Gatwick and Manchester airports there is a mix of large resident parking schemes and yellow line restrictions

• Luton Airport has resident parking schemes in place around the airport

• Bristol Airport, although smaller, is in a rural area like Stansted Airport. Around the airport yellow lines and controlled parking zones are used.

Why your views are important

We are asking for your feedback to see if a solution to airport parking can be found.

Before we can put any parking restrictions in place we will need the agreement of the majority of the affected households and businesses. For example, before we can set up a residents permit scheme on a street 75% of the affected properties must agree to it.

Current restriction zones

There are currently restrictions in the main residential areas of Takeley and Little Canfield.

West zone

East zone

How to respond

If you live in Takeley and Little Canfield we're asking you to:

• comment on the zone you live in
• tell us what, if any, restrictions you would like to see implemented in that zone
• comment on restrictions to the main roads and bus routes

You can now give your views on the proposals online, by email or by post.

The consultation closes on Friday 14 February 2025.

Online

Tell us what you think by using our online response form.

Comment now

Email

Email your comments to: consultation@uttlesford.gov.uk

⚠ You must include your name and address.

Post

Call us and we will send you a paper response form and reply-paid envelope.

Telephone: 01799 510510
 

Options

To tackle the issues we are proposing possible options for:

• main roads and bus routes
• residential streets

Main roads and bus routes option: clearways/red routes

Parked cars are currently affecting traffic flow along the main roads and bus routes.

Proposal

Clearways lines, double, single or red, which restrict all parking and sometimes stopping, at any time or for some periods during the day.

Why

They are good for reducing congestion on busy traffic routes and helping buses stay on time.

Typically only taxis may stop on red lines. All other stopping is an immediate contravention.

There is a red route currently in place on the B1256 between Takeley Parish Council and the Silver Jubilee Hall and on Parsonage Road.

Strengths

These proposed restrictions:

• are reasonably straight-forward and well understood
• need limited signage and posts
• are good for protecting public transport routes and reducing congestion

Weaknesses

But these restrictions would:

• apply to all vehicles including residents
• reduce the overall level of parking for residents as well as airport parking
• reduce parking and loading for local shops and businesses

Residential streets option 1: controlled zones such as one-hour restriction zones

Proposal

Controlled zones use yellow lines and signage to restrict parking for an hour or so on specified days.

Why

Some streets in Takeley already have a controlled zone in place which restricts parking for one hour a day during the week to discourage long stay parking.

Strengths

These proposed restrictions:

• allow local people and residents to park on-street for some or most of the day without paying for a permit - time and length of stay will depend upon the restrictions agreed

Weaknesses

But these restrictions would:

• be inconvenient for residents and their visitors especially where residents don't have driveways
• possibly just displace the problem to nearby streets

Residential streets option 2: residents parking zones

Residents parking zones use signage to define areas where only those holding residents, visitor or other permits can park on the street. They are nearly always managed online now through portals. They are very common in cities and around airports across the country.

Why

A residents parking zone is the most convenient way of stopping airport parking as it guarantees that only residents' vehicles can park.

If a residents parking zone is introduced it will mean that everyone will need to pay to park.

Resident parking charges

The current charges for resident parking in Uttlesford are:

Annual resident permits

• first permit (12 months) - £80.00
• second permit (12 months) - £122.00

Visitor permits

• 10 stays (24 hours) - £16.00
• 6 stays (6 hours) - £8.00

Carers permit

• 12 months - £36.00

Traders permit

• 12 months - £250.00

Strengths

These proposed restrictions:

• stop all non-permit holders from being able to park

Weaknesses

But these restrictions would:

• have an ongoing cost of administration for all permits
• possibly displace the problem to other areas if the zones are too small

After you have responded

We will put together a report of all the consultation responses we receive This will help us to decide on what, if anything can be done. If there is no significant agreement then no parking restrictions will be introduced and airport parkers will remain able to use residential roads.

If residents can agree on a parking scheme we would aim to introduce this in 2025.