A THURROCK councillor responsible for the borough's transport network has reported on the results of a crackdown by enforcement officers against lorry drivers parking illegally.

Conservative cabinet member Cllr Ben Maney has given details of a pilot scheme introduced in April last year which has been funded by a government grant.

The council's HGV night-time pilot scheme which has cracked down on illegal parking around borough ports  

Cllr Maney has reported that between April and December 2021 a total 1,590 fines have been issued to the drivers of HGV's parking illegally across Thurrock. 92% of all parking fines issued in the Borough were collected during this period. 

He said: "Once again our administration is actively fighting for residents. We are thankful to the Government for thinking ahead in 2021 and providing us with the resources to deal with snagging issues at the ports once we initially left the European Union.

"Now HGV drivers coming from all over know they have to follow the rules when entering Thurrock or face the consequences.

"The vast majority of these HGV fines were issued around 1am in the morning, demonstrating the effectiveness of operating out of hours and catching HGV drivers who tout the rules around the clock."

The council's recently published 'Annual Parking Report' highlights other achievements from the council's parking enforcement team, which has now been increased from ten to 15 officers – with another five posts planned to be filled shortly.

The report says the council's enforcement officers also prioritised schools, following concerns raised by parents and neighbours.

It says successes include:

• additional night-time patrols in HGV parking hot-spots leading to 1,590 Penalty Charge Notices (PCNs) being issued totalling £84,984 in fines
• between February 2021 and April 2022 officers formally warned 122 lorries to move and issued 183 fines to 59 drivers that did not act on those warnings. More than 90% of those fines have been paid.
• issuing 24,605 PCNs to vehicles that had broken parking rules between April 2021 and March 2022, meaning that drivers were fined more than three-quarters of a million pounds for parking illegally in the borough

A statement from the council adds: "When combined with money raised through council operated car parks and on-street parking it meant that the parking and enforcement service funded all of its costs and generated an additional £241,909 surplus, which is ringfenced for highways and transportation improvements."

The impact of increased enforcement has been welcomed by Cllr Allen Mayes, whose Tilbury Riverside ward has been blighted by lorry-parking issues.

He said: "I welcome the success of Thurrock's parking strategy. Now I am pushing for our first HGV no-parking zone to be on Fort Road and the World's End Car Park. We have a number of legal HGV parks and drivers should be using those dedicated areas not frustrating local residents."