Emission-based Parking Charges Considered for Reading

HIGHER polluting vehicles will cost more to park in Reading under new proposals being considered by the Council as part of its ongoing drive to improve local air quality and the health of residents.

The proposed charges for on-street parking and resident parking permits would vary depending on a vehicle’s emissions. A sliding scale of parking tariffs based on a vehicle’s emissions rating would be introduced, meaning the less polluting the vehicle, the less you pay.

The scheme sits alongside the Council’s drive to encourage use of low or zero emission vehicles, public transport, cycling and walking, and reduce air pollution to benefit the health of residents. It would also contribute towards the aim of the Council, and borough, for Reading to become a net zero town.

Emission-based car parking charges will be made possible by a necessary upgrade of on-street pay and display machines which will also enable easier and more convenient ways to pay.

The new charging structure will be considered by members of the Council’s Policy committee on 20 January https://democracy.reading.gov.uk/documents/s34018/Changes%20to%20Parking%20services.pdf .If agreed, the scheme would be introduced in April, subject to a public consultation on the changes.

The Council’s current on-street pay and display machines are now reaching their end of life and their replacement will allow the introduction of emission-based parking charges.

Under the proposed scheme, drivers wishing to park in a pay and display zone would need to enter their vehicle’s registration details into the machine, which would then access DVLA information about the vehicle’s emission rating and charge accordingly.

Charges for residents’ and other types of parking permit will also vary according to the vehicle’s emissions.

The changes have enabled a wider review of on-street parking in the borough, including a reduction in the number of different tariff zones, fewer pay and display machines and more convenient methods of payment.

For the first time in Reading, drivers will be able to pay for on-street parking using a bank card or mobile phone, as well as the existing RingGo system, and cash in some locations.

The machines will not issue paper tickets but parking enforcement officers will be able to check a vehicle’s payment status on a hand-held device, using the vehicle’s registration, similar to the current process for checking vehicles parked in resident zones.

The Council’s Electric Vehicle Charging Infrastructure Strategy, which was adopted in 2024, aims to support the transition from petrol and diesel by creating a comprehensive infrastructure for electric vehicle charging in the borough. The Council has secured £866,000 Government funding for the installation of up to 2,700 on-street charging points and up to 150 pavement gullies to enable on-street charging.

Cllr John Ennis, Lead Councillor for Climate Strategy and Transport, said:

“Petrol and diesel vehicles emit pollution which can be particularly damaging to vulnerable individuals such as children, older people and individuals with lung and heart conditions.

“We know that transport accounts for around 30% of all carbon emissions nationally and the Council is aiming to improve air quality in Reading by encouraging the use of low emission vehicles, public transport, cycling and walking.

“Emission-based parking charges means those motorists with higher polluting vehicles pay more, while those with lower or zero emission vehicles pay less.

“The introduction of modern new pay and display machines also offer easier and more convenient ways to pay for on-street parking and ends the need for unnecessary paper tickets and, for the first time in Reading, the ability to pay conveniently for parking using a bank card or mobile phone.

“We have seen similar schemes successfully introduced by councils around the country. Alongside the Council’s major investment in faster and cheaper public transport, we believe it is an effective way of helping to reduce the number of high emission vehicles, while improving air quality, benefitting health and helping achieve our ambitions to be a net zero borough.”