Gosport drivers issued with 822 fines worth £28,770 in just a month

It comes after Hampshire County Council took charge of civil on-street parking enforcement from the police, who had for years still been responsible.

Now a freedom of information request revealed 822 charges of £35 were levied in a month, costing drivers around £28,770 if paid within 14 days.

Vehicles in Trinity Green were ticketed 104 times, with 81 of those issued for parking in a bay for longer than the specified time.

A further 22 tickets were issued to illegally-parked cars on either double or single yellow lines.

The second worst road was Mumby Road, with 68 tickets – all but three were handed out for drivers being parked too long in a timed bay.

The third worst was South Street car park with 57 tickets. All these were for illegal loading/unloading of vehicles.

Tickets were levied from September 29 and all 822 were issued within a month.

Hampshire Constabulary had for years part-funded a parking warden to enforce the rules as Gosport was the only place in Hampshire left with criminal enforcement.

It is overseen by enforcement firm NSL after the county council took over civil enforcement.

Freddie Osman, 44, of Avery Lane in Gosport, received a ticket that said she had parked in a street in restricted hours – despite her road not having any parking time limits.

Freddie appealed to the council but it simply said she had been parked on double yellow lines and they would not accept an appeal.

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Freddie, who said she just rushed home from the vets with her pet, said:’I had already moved my car off the lines after rushing back from the vets with my sick dog.

‘I could understand if my car was fully on the lines but it was my bumper and my wheel was just on it.

‘It’s saying I was parked in a restricted area but it’s outside my house.

‘It’s left me feeling rather anxious and paranoid in parking my car.’

Councillor Rob Humby, deputy council leader, said: ‘A well-managed on-street parking service plays an important part in keeping our roads safe and our towns moving.’

A message from the Editor, Mark Waldron

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