Lion Green Road car park in Coulsdon not free as promised, income taken by LBC

Dear Mr Black

Thank you for your letter email/letter dated 26 December 2009 in which you
have requested, among other matters how much money was paid into the cash
machines at Lion Green Road car park on 24/12/09 and 31/12/09.

We are considering your request under the terms of the Freedom of
Information Act 2000, and hope to respond within the statutory 20 working
days.

In some circumstances a fee may be payable and if that is the case, either
myself or a colleague will let you know the likely charges before
proceeding.

If you have any queries about this email, please contact me. Please
remember to quote the reference number above in any future communications.

Yours sincerely

Valerie Morris

Contract Monitoring Officer

Chief Executive's Office

Democratic & Legal Services Division

5th Floor South Side

Taberner House

Park Lane Croydon

CR9 3JS

Tel: 0208 686 4433 ext. 62676

Fax: 0208 760 5679

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Dear Mr Black,

Request for Information under the Freedom of Information Act 2000.

Ref - F/09/868

Thank you for your email dated 26 December 2009 in which you have
requested various information regarding Lion Green Road Car Park. We have
now considered your request under the terms of the Freedom of Information
Act 2000 (FOIA).

It is not possible to obtain information about monies paid into the Lion
Green Car Parks on specific days of the week and specific days of the year
as we do not hold and record the information in that format. The pay &
display machines at Lion Green car park are mains powered which means each
machine would need to be isolated and switched off individually. Machine
information is held for a maximum of 28 days and therefore it is not
possible to obtain the information requested.

We can confirm that from April 2009 - November 2009 we received
£72,080.70 income for this car park.

The days when parking was free in council car parks was publicised in Your
Croydon and local press.

The Parking Service is self-funded and any surplus made in Parking
Services goes towards the funding of the Freedom Pass.

If you are unhappy with the way the department has handled your request
under the Freedom of Information Act, you may ask for an internal review.
You can do this by outlining the details of your complaint and either

e-mailing us at [1][Croydon Borough Council request email]

faxing us on 0208 760 5679

writing to FOI Complaints, London Borough of Croydon, Democratic and
Legal Services, Croydon, CR9 3JS

If you are not content with the outcome of the internal review, you have
the right to apply directly to the Information Commissioner for a
decision. The Information Commissioner can be contacted at:

Information Commissioner's Office, Wycliffe House, Water Lane, Wilmslow,
Cheshire, SK9 5AF

Yours sincerely,

Tracey Patel

Communication & Quality Assurance Coordinator

Community Services Department

Parking Services

3rd Floor Davis House

Robert Street, Croydon

Tel - 020 8407 6899

Fax - 020 8667 1066

THINK Customer

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References

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1. mailto:[Croydon Borough Council request email]
mailto:[Croydon Borough Council request email]

Dear Sir,

I acknowledge receipt of your request for an internal review dated 1
February 2010. I have been asked to undertake the internal review of this
matter.

The information commissioner recommends that internal reviews are
undertaken within 20 working days following receipt of the request, in
other words, by 1 March 2010. I have requested information from relevant
officers which will allow me to consider your review request and I will
revert to you once I have the information to hand and have had an
opportunity to consider it in relation to the provisions of the Freedom of
Information Act.

Yours sincerely

Jessica Stockton

Jessica Stockton

Corporate Solicitor

Democratic & Legal Services Division

Chief Executive's Office

Southside, 5^th Floor Taberner House

Park Lane, Croydon CR9 3JS

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Dear Sir,

I refer to your email dated 1 February 2010 and my acknowledgement email
dated 11 February 2010. I confirm that I have been requested to undertake
the internal review in relation to this matter. I have considered your
request and the response you received in relation to the Freedom of
Information Act requirements.

In your initial request on 26 December 2009 you asked for the following
information in relation to the Lion Green Road Car Park:

"Croydon Council advertised that parking in all its car parks would be
free all day on Christmas Eve and New Years Eve.

In the council's Lion Green Road car park on Christmas Eve there were no
signs saying that parking was free, and the parking meter machines were
still taking money from the public.

[1.1] Why was this?

[1.2] How much money was paid into the cash machines at this car park
on 240-12-09, and how much on 31-12-09?

[1.3] How much was paid in on Saturdays 19-12-09, 12-12-09, 5-12-09,
28-11-09?

[1.4] What was the total income from the LGR car park in 2009?

[1.5] How much of this was on normal weekdays, how much on Saturdays,
and how much on Sundays and Public Holidays?

[1.6] Since the council promised that parking would be free on
24-12-09 and 31-12-09, but the public was misled into paying for parking
at this car park on those days, will the council now donate all that
income to non council charities?"

The response you received was as follows:

"It is not possible to obtain information about monies paid into the Lion
Green Car Parks on specific days of the week and specific days of the year
as we do not hold and record the information in that format. The pay &
display machines at Lion Green car park are mains powered which means each
machine would need to be isolated and switched off individually. Machine
information is held for a maximum of 28 days and therefore it is not
possible to obtain the information requested.

We can confirm that from April 2009 - November 2009 we received
£72,080.70 income for this car park.

The days when parking was free in council car parks was publicised in Your
Croydon and local press.

The Parking Service is self-funded and any surplus made in Parking
Services goes towards the funding of the Freedom Pass."

On 1 February 2010, you make a request for an internal review of the
Council's response to you and indicated that the Council had not responded
to your first and last questions and you were dissatisfied with the
remaining response. Associated with this request for an internal review,
you asked a number of new questions. Ordinarily such new queries would be
dealt with as fresh Freedom of Information requests; however I have dealt
with them as part of the review in so far as I have been able to. In your
letter for an internal review you stated as follows:

"(1) You have not answered the first question. Please do so.

(2) You say the machines hold data for 28 days.

Please provide a copy of that data for the most recent occasion for
which you have data.

Note that this FOI Request requires you to obtain the data.

(3) Why would the machines need to be switched off in order to
extract data?

Surely you take the data while they are on?

(4) If the machines hold data for a maximum of 28 days, then
presumably you download that data that often.

Please list the last 10 occasions on which you did obtain data from
these machines.

Please also describe what information you can obtain from them.

(5) You have not answered the last question. Please do so.

(6) If the machines hold data for 28 days, then given that this FOI.
Request was submitted on 26-12-09, you should have no problem in finding
out how much money was paid in on 24-12-09 and in 31-12-09, as you were
asked. Having been asked, you were required to find this out. Please
provide this information.

(7) Are you saying that information in "Your Croydon" and "the local
press" constitutes formal legal notice of a change to parking charges?

Are you saying that the public in general should rely on newspaper
report when deciding what the rules are for parking?

(8) Please provide a copy of the Traffic Orders made for the
Variation of Charges for the free days over Christmas and the New Year.

What days were involved?

Where were these Notices published?

Did this include every offstreet parking place involved, and if not,
why not"

We have conducted a search into our records and confirm we hold some of
the information you have requested and I include all the information we
are currently able to access. In responding, I have numbered your requests
1.1- 1.6 for the request made on 26 December 2009 and 2.1-2.8 for the
internal review request and further questions raised on 1 February 2010.

1.1 The changes shown in the press were not part of a legal process
and no permanent alterations have been made to the Order and a Notice of
Variation was not advertised showing any different charges. The idea was
that it was a temporary concession at Christmas to show Christmas spirit.
No signs were put up because it was a temporary goodwill gesture and not
an alteration to the Order and in addition, I am advised that it would not
have been viable and/or possible to put signage up at all locations and on
all pay and display machines given the large number and the fact that this
was not an alteration of the legal requirements.

I am unable to comment on whether or why the machines at Lion
Green Car Park may have been taking money, and this is not something which
is capable of verification at this stage, as is explained in response to
questions 1.2 and 1.3 below, however it was a goodwill gesture and not an
alteration of the current legal position regarding payment for parking.

1.2, 1.3, 1.5, and 2.6:

I am advised that the Council is unable to provide you with
information regarding the sums which were collected and/or paid in on the
dates 24 and 31 December 2009 at this stage, nor am I able to verify if
that kind of information is in fact held, what level of detail is
available or what format it is recorded in. I have been informed by the
relevant department that there is only one member of staff who is said to
be trained and capable of accurately using the software package which
pertains to the recording, downloading, populating and use of the machines
and who could, if this information is held by the Council, extract and
interpret the data. The member of staff in question is away from the
office until the second week of March of this year and there is no other
member of staff who can assist in their absence, particularly as, in the
absence of training any data they attempted to report or extract could be
inaccurate and/or misleading. This is an operational issue which will need
to be considered and addressed as part of the relevant departments'
forward planning and future training proposals.

1.4 From April 2009 - November 2009 £72,080.70 income was received
for this car park.

1.6 No. As previously advised, the Parking Service is self-funded
and any surplus made in Parking Services goes towards the funding of the
Freedom Pass. Please also see response at paragraph 2.5 below.

2.1 Please see paragraph 1.1 above.

2.2 I am advised that each machine keeps taking data until its
memory is full as opposed to keeping information for a set period of time
as previously suggested in the initial response to you. The time it takes
to fill the memory depends on how busy the machine is. It will hold the
data until it is down logged from the machine. I am unable to provide you
with details regarding when the information was last downloaded as this is
accessible only via the software package on which only the absent member
of staff is trained.

2.3 I am advised that the Machines are not switched off but will go
Out of Service when the Council opens the machine to extract the data.

2.4 I am informed that the data is downloaded on every routine visit
or when the Council are called (Display goes off or an alert light shows).
The periodicity of the routines is at present 6 monthly. I am not able to
provide you with data pertaining to the last 10 occasions on which data
was obtained from the machines, nor am I able to describe the nature of
the information which can be obtained from these machines in view of the
difficulties set out in response to questions 1.2, 1.3 & 2.2 above.

2.5 Your last question (in your initial request) was as follows:
"Since the council promised that parking would be free on 24-12-09 and
31-12-09, but the public was misled into paying for parking at this car
park on those days, will the council now donate all that income to non
council charities?" The response you received was as follows: "The Parking
Service is self-funded and any surplus made in Parking Services goes
towards the funding of the Freedom Pass." I consider that a response was
provided to your question, although you may not be in agreement with the
nature of the response. If you are dissatisfied with the actions of the
Council in relation to the operation or otherwise of the parking machines
on the dates you mention, it may be that the most appropriate manner in
which to address concerns about this, is as part of the corporate
complaints process. The corporate complaints team can be contacted via the
following email address: [1][email address]

2.7 In response to both questions, the answer is no. It was not an
alteration or variation of legal requirements but a goodwill gesture.

2.8 The changes shown in the press were not part of a legal process
and no permanent alterations have been made to the Order and a Notice of
Variation was not advertised showing any different charges. The idea was
that it was a temporary concession at Christmas to show Christmas spirit.
As there was no variation, I am unable to comment regarding why the
"variation" did or did not apply to off street parking. For ease of
reference I enclose the text of the advertisement which was published in
advance of the Christmas period setting out the Council's proposals.

I appreciate that you may be dissatisfied with the sufficiency of the
response you have received, however in the absence of a trained member of
staff to locate, extract and process the data held on the machines I am
advised by the department in question that they are unable to assist you
further. As stated above, the staff member in question is due to return to
the office during the second week of March, whereafter the Council ought
to be in a position to provide you with further details. At this time, the
Council could seek training for another member of staff to operate the
software package to download, populate and then extract and provide the
information you have requested, however undertaking this training, in
conjunction with the work necessary to provide the information to you
would exceed the "appropriate limit".

The appropriate limit has been specified in the Freedom of Information
(Fees and Appropriate Limit) Regulations 2004 and for local authorities it
is set at £450. This represents the estimated cost of one person spending
2½ working days in locating, retrieving and extracting the information
from where it is stored. Under Section 12 of the FOIA the Council is not
obliged to comply with your request if it falls within the Section 12
exemption. I am accordingly applying Section 12 to outstanding information
highlighted in the response above. However, as has been indicated, the
trained member of staff will be returning to the office and once they do
return, I no longer consider that Section 12 would be applicable as
described above.

Finally, I note that you were dissatisfied that the original response to
your request was provided on the last day of the 20 day period within
which the Council ought to respond to Freedom of Information requests. In
this regard, as with every Freedom of Information request, the Council
will endeavour to respond to queries as quickly as possible, however as
the Council received 880 Freedom of Information requests last year,
resources were and continue to be stretched in this regard and responses
are not always received as quickly as one might like. Despite this, the
Council were able to meet the statutory deadline in relation to your
request.

If you are not content with the outcome of the internal review, you have
the right to apply directly to the Information Commissioner for a
decision. The Information Commissioner can be contacted at:

Information Commissioner's Office, Wycliffe House, Water Lane, Wilmslow,
Cheshire, SK9 5AF

Yours sincerely

Jessica Stockton

Jessica Stockton

Corporate Solicitor

Democratic & Legal Services Division

Chief Executive's Office

Southside, 5^th Floor Taberner House

Park Lane, Croydon CR9 3JS

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Dear Sir,

I refer to your below email. I have requested that the relevant department make the outstanding information available so that it can be provided to you, however as I am due to go on annual leave, you can contact my colleague Howard Passman in the interim should you have any queries. He has been copied in to this email for ease of reference.

Yours Sincerely

Jessica Stockton

show quoted sections

Dear Mr Black,

Further to my colleague Ms. Stockton's email to you dated 16 March 2010, I
have now been provided with the outstanding information in response to
your request for information and Internal Review. This is set out below:

o During the period in question the machines at Lion Green Car Park were
able to take money.

o Income for 24 and 31 December 2009:

24 December 2009 - £120.50

31 December 2009 - £91

o Data Downloads

I have been informed that data was downloaded on 4 February 2010, 8
December 2009, 23 October 2009 and 12 August 2009.

As requested I attach a copy of the latest data download.

I believe that you have now been provided with all the information in
respect of your request for information and Internal Review. If that is
the case and you are not content with the outcome of the review, you have
the right to apply directly to the Information Commissioner for a
decision. The Information Commissioner can be contacted at:

Information Commissioner's Office, Wycliffe House,

Water Lane, Wilmslow, Cheshire, SK9 5AF

Yours sincerely

Howard Passman

Information Management Manager

Democratic & Legal Services Division

Southside, 5th Floor Taberner House

Park Lane, Croydon CR9 3JS

020 8726 6000 ext. 62318

www.croydon.gov.uk

www.croydononline.org (Community Website)

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