The Local Government Association has criticised a report by insurance website confused.com which claimed councils are not spending money raised from parking charges on road improvements.
The website said that the amount of money local authorities received from parking increased by £168 million in five years, going from £682 million in 2013/14 to £847 million in 2017/18 – a 10% rise.
But it said that a Freedom of Information request showed that “these profits are not always spent on improving road conditions for motorists”, citing a 21% decrease in this spending.
However, Martin Tett, transport spokesman for the Local Government Association, said: “This report completely ignores central government funding reductions. Between 2010 and 2020, councils will have lost 57p out of every £1 the Government had provided for services, which is a much more significant source of funding for roads than surplus parking income.
“Surplus parking income is not the only source of money for roads and not all transport spend is spent on roads but can still be helpful to motorists, such as supporting concessionary bus fares to help reduce congestion.”
