Powers to ban pavement parking should be extended across England to make streets safer, councils have said.
Wheelchair users, older people, and parents with pushchairs are among those put at risk by having to navigate around vehicles mounted on kerbs, a study commissioned by the LGA has warned.
The investigation found that some vehicles cause “a complete obstruction to someone walking or wheeling”, meaning they have “no option but to enter the carriageway to continue their journey”. It recommended that pavement parking be banned across England, and urged the Government to “recommit to the principle that the function of the footway is to provide space for walking and wheeling”.
A Department for Transport consultation on giving councils outside of London the power to prohibit pavement parking ended in November 2020, but no announcement has been made.
The LGA said a change in the rules is “long overdue” and would help councils protect older and vulnerable people from injury, as well as support national targets to increase levels of walking and cycling.
LGA Transport Spokesperson Cllr Darren Rodwell said: “Pavement parking is one of the biggest complaints from pedestrians, but, three years on, councils outside of London still do not have the powers they need to tackle this scourge.
“If we are to meet the Government’s ambition for half of all trips in England’s towns and cities to be walked, wheeled or cycled by 2030, then it makes sense to give all councils the same powers as in the capital, making our streets safer and footpaths open for everyone.”