Eliminating pavement parking in London

London banned pavement parking over fifty-years ago, yet pavement parking is still permitted on thousands of streets across the capital.

London Living Streets Group set out to establish how many streets are exempt from the ban, as well as to challenge boroughs to prohibit pavement parking by removing those exemptions.

Their findings are detailed in Living Streets and London Living Streets Group's new report 'Eliminating Pavement Parking in London'.

The front cover of Living Streets and London Living Streets Group's report 'Eliminating Pavement Parking in London'.

Stats that read: i) Pavement parking was banned under Greater London (General Purposes) Act 1974; ii) 4,107 streets are exempt from the pavement parking ban, according to Borough data*; iii) 225 Lewisham has the most in inner London; iv) 575 Redbridge has the most in outer London

Why does this matter?

Pavements were designed for people. Yet every day, vehicles parked on pavements are forcing people into the road and into the path of traffic. This is particularly a problem for blind and partially-sighted people, parents with pushchairs and young children, wheelchair users and others who use mobility aids.

What can I do?

Ask your local councillor to:

1) Commit to a borough-wide target to eliminate pavement parking by the end of 2029.

2) Remove streets exempt to the 1974 ban, except in exceptional circumstances – and publish the list of any remaining exempt streets. 

*No data was obtained from Newham, Tower Hamlets or Ealing