THE COST of clamping to Dublin City Council in 2009 was more than twice the income made from clamping release fees in the same time period.
The recorded income from clamping came to €4.84 million in 2009. However, the budgeted cost of parking enforcement stood at €9.94 million in the councils 2009 budget estimates, indicating a shortfall of €5.1 million.
When asked for the cost of running the parking enforcement service for the local authority area in 2009, a spokeswoman for the council said this was “commercially sensitive information” although she did note the amount “greatly exceeds” income from clamp release fees.
However, under the Road Transport and Safety section of Dublin City Council’s 2009 budget, it is stated the council’s adopted expenditure for parking enforcement was €9,940,392. Some 60,543 cars were clamped by the council in 2009, an increase of 865 on the previous year.
The most-clamped street in Dublin in 2009 was Noel Purcell Walk, where a total of 1,143 vehicles were clamped last year. Other hot spots included Shelbourne Road (where 950 vehicles were clamped) and Jervis Street where 756 cars were clamped.
The contract for parking enforcement in the Dublin City Council area is currently held by Dublin Street Parking Services which operates clamping on public roads, streets and footpaths in the local authority area. The contract expires in 2011, when it will be put out to tender.
The fee to release a clamp within the Dublin city border stands at €80.
None of the other three Dublin local authorities – Fingal, Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown or South Dublin – currently operates clamping services. Breaches of parking regulations are handled through parking tickets and fines.
However, when contacted by The Irish Times, a spokesperson for South Dublin County Council said it was considering clamping.
Meanwhile, Dublin City Council has said motorists who continue to park in areas designated for free parking after 2pm on Thursdays, Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays up until December 27th will not be clamped where signs indicating free parking remain in place.
A spokeswoman said that, given weather conditions and subsequent reallocation of staff to other duties, it had not been possible to remove the temporary signage although this is expected to happen by the weekend: “In instances where people park in an area where ‘free times’ are still indicated it is not proposed to clamp these vehicles. We will grant a full refund on appeal once the circumstances are verified.”