I would like to reassure residents in the Queen’s Park area that Brighton and Hove City Council did carry out a full consultation on proposals to extend the residents’ parking scheme to Sunday (The Argus, January 21).

Details of the results are published on the council’s website at www.brighton-hove.gov.uk with the reports for the environment cabinet members’ meeting of September 16, 2010. The extension was agreed at that meeting.

The council direct-mailed more than 5,000 residents in the Queen’s Park area, including those in East Drive, to ask their views on extending the scheme to Sundays. We also consulted ward councillors, businesses, emergency services, hoteliers and other groups. We looked at these proposals not for financial gain, but because we had had representations from ward councillors and residents about the need for parking controls. A majority of those who responded (53%) were in favour of the Sunday extension.

Finally, in response to Ms Drew’s concerns about not being able to visit Queen’s Park by car with her family, the council has provided short, medium and long-term parking on all roads surrounding the park and is creating more, on the north side of South Avenue, as part of the advertised traffic order.

Coun Geoffrey Theobald
cabinet member for the environment, Brighton and Hove City Council