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Parking fine cameras ‘make our kids safer’
Two council enforcement vehicles currently prowl the streets on the look out for dangerous parking.
And in the third in our series on Bedford Borough Council’s strategy to deal with government cuts amounting to £37million over four years, we are taking a look at these vehicles which have generated £138,000 in income since March 2012.
The first of the vehicles, which are equipped with a camera and automatic number plate recognition software, was approved via an executive decision by Mayor of Bedford Dave Hodgson in August 2010. Since then a second vehicle has been introduced and councillor Charles Royden, who is transport portfolio holder claims the scheme has been a great success.
He said: “The decision was taken as a result of ongoing, long term requests for more effective enforcement of safety related parking restrictions, particularly in the vicinity of schools and routes to and from them.
“These requests were made by school head teachers and their staff, parents, road safety professionals, the police, local councillors and community representatives.”
He added: “It’s not about fundraising. What it is doing is making our children safer, making the roads safer and helping the traffic move more freely.”
In the last financial year, despite generating £138,000 for the council coffers the scheme has been operating at a loss of £15,562. This is in part due to the purchase of the latest vehicle.
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Weather for Bedford
Wednesday 19 June 2013
Today
Sunny spells
Temperature: 13 C to 24 C
Wind Speed: 12 mph
Wind direction: North west
Tomorrow
Light showers
Temperature: 13 C to 19 C
Wind Speed: 13 mph
Wind direction: East
