Government inaction on banning pavement parking has come under fire from the Transport Committee, with MPs saying the practice should be eradicated across England as they highlight the detrimental effect on people’s lives.

Previous research has found 55% of the public don’t want a pavement parking ban

Pavement parking has already been banned by default in London for more than 40 years, and is currently in the process of being outlawed in Scotland but is still generally allowed in England. That’s despite Department for Transport suggestions of a pavement parking review in 2015 ago, which was not carried out, as well as a year ago.

In the Transport Select Committe’s new report on pavement parking, published five months after the committee started an inquiry, MPs have said the Department for Transport should implement an outright ban on pavement parking across England in the long term while clamping down on it in the short term. This would be through measures including a national awareness campaign to highlight the negative consequences, while also making it easier for local authorities to put in place parking restrictions by removing some of the bureaucratic burdens, including reforming the Traffic Regulation Orders (TRO) process.

The Committee has also recommended that the Government consult on a new offence of obstructive pavement parking.

While the issue is bound to prove contentious – previous research has found 55% of the public don’t want a pavement parking ban – chair of the Transport Committee, Lilian Greenwood MP said: “This is a thorny problem that may be difficult to resolve to the satisfaction of all, but the Government’s inaction has left communities blighted by unsightly and obstructive pavement parking and individuals afraid or unable to leave their homes or safely navigate the streets.

“In the long-term we believe the Government should ban pavement parking across England – as is already the case in London. Local authorities could create exemptions if they choose to do so, but drivers would know that unless it was expressly permitted it was illegal to park their car on the pavement.

“We have also recommended that the Government run an awareness campaign about the negative impacts of pavement parking, to inform drivers about the impact their behaviour has on others.”