Sent 05th November 2006

Dear Madam,

I wrote to you recently on the subject of Parking Permits for Motorcycles, it was a response to the letter you sent to me dated 17 October 2006. I am e-mailing you now for two reasons, firstly I have not yet heard back from you (I understand that you are probably very busy, so that is not currently of great concern) but secondly and more importantly because I have several things I would like to state in addition to what I said in my last correspondence.

Firstly I would like to make you aware of just how dire the situation has become, my partner spent 20 minutes riding around the area several nights back just trying to find spaces to park our motorcycles. For a car driver this is a minor inconvenience, however for a motorcyclist this becomes dangerous. The temperature that night dropped to near freezing, and it was beyond the point of frost forming whilst we were desperately trying to find somewhere to park the bikes before we became ill. This is a pattern that is likely to continue and worsen unless action is taken quickly, as I have stated before these motorcycles are our only means of transport, and we will be working over the Christmas Holidays when I expect all the non-permit parking areas will be filled with Christmas visitors.
You may recall that in your previous letter you mentioned a pilot study that had taken place, and that provisions were being made for residents to purchase a second permit. In my letter I expressed satisfaction at this, however whilst searching the IBC website for the councils parking policy (Which I have requested previously) I discovered the files relating the previous study and pilot scheme. I have read through the documentation, as the matter is currently of great interest to me, and I now wish to explain to you that I am not at all impressed with the arrangements being made.
You may recall in my previous correspondence I touched upon the matter of permit pricing, and how I believe it should be priced on a grading system. Having read the previous study I can tell you now that I most certainly will not be paying £60 for a second permit when we will be occupying less space together than a car parked with a single permit.
If I have to send a letter to the IBC Parking Services in relation to this every single day I will do, I believe it is completely unreasonable of the council to expect us to pay an extra £60 in order to park a second motorcycle.
It is my firm belief that if the council does pursue this course of action, without making due consideration to motorcycles, then IBC will be unreasonably reducing my enjoyment of our new home which as you may be aware is a contravention of the EU Human Rights Directive. The council has already set a legal precedent for graded pricing through the provision of free or reduced cost motorcycle parking in some of the towns many Pay and Display car parks. This can easily be applied to the parking zones, and would certainly improve matters.

I hope that we can find a way to resolve this issue in a way that is acceptable to both parties, however please understand that if I feel we are not being treated fairly, I will not hesitate in seeking legal recourse, not only for myself but for anyone else who stumbles upon this inadequacy in the councils parking policy.

Thank you again for your time

Yours sincerely

Ben Tasker MOC