Following the public outcry over the current scheme, and the announcement of its future rollout in other suburbs, the city council agreed to hold consultations with councillors and the public; something that should have happened before implementation.
From the first meeting, I demanded to know how the suburbs had been selected. Metro police chief Chris Ngcobo replied that surveys had been done to determine which suburbs needed paid parking.
When I continued to insist we see the surveys, it was revealed that Ngcobo lied. No surveys were conducted.
At a subsequent public meeting, then MMC for Transport Rehana Moosajee proposed the creation of a paid parking committee that would involve all relevant departments, councillors and community representatives. We since learnt that this committee was formed, but excluded councillors and community representatives.
Metro police agreed to hold the rollout of paid parking in other suburbs until proper surveys were conducted by the transport department. The results of these surveys were being communicated to the suburbs through a series of public meetings.
The new Transport MMC, Christine Walters, was in charge of this. My interactions with her and the department were very constructive. We managed not only to determine where paid parking would be inappropriate, but also addressed many underlying issues that created parking problems and congestion.
I am confident that Walters will be able to assist us with solutions. However, Metro police unfortunately remain the custodian of the paid parking contracts.
Ironically, the non-performance of Metro police in our business nodes has led to many of our problems in the first place, together with a lack of enforcement by the town planning department.
I will continue to put pressure on these two departments to perform, while keeping an eye on the parking studies and transport plans in my ward.
