It's official: council survey finds what all Portsmouth drivers know - parking is a nightmare

The questions attracted responses from 2,963 people, 2,500 of whom said they were fed up with the daily struggle to find a parking space outside their homes.

Both permitted and non-permitted areas were named as the worst in Portsmouth with roads surrounding Chichester Road in North End and Fratton Road among them.

Claire Doyle lives on Chichester Road which does not have permits.

The 37-year-old said: ‘You have to drive around and around to get parking after 5pm during the week. People are constantly getting parking tickets because they have to park on double-yellow lines.’

Wymering Road resident, 51-year-old Linda Canwell, added: ‘They’re building more houses and that means even more cars. Buses come down here as well so it’s a nightmare. One of my friends nipped to go and pick her husband up and when she came back there were no spaces. We have to park at College Park all the time.’

Robert Stockton, 81, of Funtington Road was concerned about commercial parking on his road. ‘All the roads in this area are the same. At about 6pm there’s nowhere to park. So many people have to park their cars at College Park. A lot of the trouble is the vans that take up so much room. I think permits would help but they’ve got to be enforced,’ he said.

The survey found 85 per cent of respondents living outside a permit area found parking to be problematic, compared to 72 per cent of those who lived inside parking zones.

In total 82 per cent of survey participants said parking was a problem. Council leader Cllr Gerald Vernon-Jackson said: ‘I am amazed it is so low. When residents have been asked if they want to get rid of the permit scheme in the road where they live they have always said they want to keep it. If people ask for permit schemes then that is what we will give them.’ Other roads deemed to be bad included those off Fawcett Road, Francis Avenue and Albert Road in Southsea and those surrounding Stubbington Avenue and Mayfield Road in Copnor.

The survey was part of a study on parking. Results will go to the city council’s traffic and transport scrutiny committee next Friday.

Cllr Lynne Stagg, the council’s traffic boss, said: ‘As a densely populated island city, there are issues with parking across Portsmouth. There is simply not enough on-street parking to accommodate all of the cars and we want to work with residents to find solutions that can work in their areas. I will be attending the meeting to explain the administration’s priorities to the panel and I look forward to seeing their recommendations.’