Our performance from the last year
Supporting Events Hosted by the Council
Every year, the city holds exciting events that bring people together like the:
- Southend City Jam
- Christmas Lights Switch-On
- Firework Spectaculars
- Remembrance Sunday Parade.
These events attract thousands of visitors and celebrate our community spirit.
Behind the scenes, Traffic Management and Parking Services team works with organisers to prepare necessary Traffic Orders, covering:
- road closures
- route diversions
- emergency access
- signage layouts
- back up plans
Balancing the excitement of each event with the practical need to keep the city moving.
On event days, the team is easy to see:
- putting up signs for suspended parking
- enforcing parking rules
- keeping removal vehicles on standby
This means residents, businesses and emergency services can carry on safely whilst everyone enjoys the event.
Through teamwork, the city delivers fun and safe every year. In 2024/25, the team did an amazing job making sure all events were:
- well-organised
- safe
- successful for all
Annual Fees and Charges Review and Implementation
Each year, we review parking charges, to make sure they remain:
- fair
- easy to understand
- in line with our transport strategy
Any changes will be part of our commitment to keeping the parking service sustainable by:
- managing transport responsible
- managing finances responsible
- keeping affordability
- delivering and maintaining high-quality services
To put new pricing in place it involves updating our:
- pay-and-display machines
- cashless parking apps
- website information
- signage at all parking locations
The review process helps create a parking system that works for:
- residents
- businesses
- visitors
For 2024/25, an inflationary increase was made to:
- parking permits
- suspensions
- dispensations
Management of Abandoned Vehicles
We work hard to keep roads safe and clear of abandoned vehicles. These are usually identified by having:
- no valid road tax
- looks in disrepair
- full of rubbish
- not moved in ages
We encouraged people to report abandoned vehicles via our website: Abandoned or Untaxed Vehicle, but not all reported vehicles meet the standard for enforcement.
In 2024/25, 28 vehicles were reported, but only 11 were found to be abandoned.
This reflects the careful checks we carry out and the need for accurate public reporting.
For more information, please view our Vehicle Removal Policy.
School Parking Enforcement
Keeping children safe when they travel to and from school is very important. Road markings outside schools help clearly show the entrances and make these areas safer at busy times.
In 2024/25, our Civil Enforcement Officers carried out special patrols and across the city and issued 250 parking fines.
These patrols, both planned and led by complaints, addressed issues such as:
- parking in restricted areas (parking contravention code 01)
- parking without a valid permit or payment
This work helps:
- reduce congestion
- keep roads safe
- protect pupils and families.
Working with our Fraud Investigation Team to stop Blue Badge misuse, protects the scheme for those who really need it.
By planning and working together, we make sure child safety and community wellbeing stay at the heart of school parking management.
Parking Payment Preferences
More and more people are paying for parking without using cash. In 2024/25, 87.5% of payments were made by card or through parking apps. Of these, 54.7% were through RingGo and Mobon apps. This shows that most people now prefer mobile payments.
Paying by app is encouraged, as it:
- sends reminders before your parking runs out
- allows to add more parking remotely
- helps avoid risking a parking fine
Many residents, businesses and visitors regularly use the Southend Pass. This is a subscription-based service paid monthly or yearly. It lets you park for up to 3 hours at a time in each of the parking 4 zones across the city. The Southend Pass app is free to download from the App Store and Google Play. More information is available at Southend Pass.
We will keep looking at trends and listening to feedback and while we plan to move to more cashless payments. We will still let people pay in cash when it makes sense.
Moving Traffic Restrictions
We have taken steps to get legal enforcement powers for moving traffic restrictions in-line with the TMA. These powers enable us to use camera technology to enforce specific traffic rules.
We applied to the Department for Transport (DfT) and have successfully been designated as an enforcement authority. This designation represents a key milestone in our commitment to:
- improve road safety
- reduce congestion
- decrease pollution
We will move forward with active enforcement in 2026 to help meet with our strategic objectives in traffic regulation and highway management.
For further details view our Moving traffic enforcement page.
Parking Zone Policy Review
Southend is a busy and growing city, so we reviewed our Parking Zone (PZ) policy to ensure it remains fit for purpose with the goals to:
- make things simpler
- respond to requests faster
Improvements have been made to our processes for:
- new parking zone applications
- reviews of existing parking zones
Disabled Parking Bay Policy
We have a formal policy for applying for residential disabled parking bays. The policy makes the process fair and organised.
The new policy is for all new bays to be enforceable by having traffic orders in place. This helps make parking easier for people with mobility needs and stops misuse.
Over time, all existing bays that are still needed will be made enforceable.
We have set aside money for up to 50 new bays each year. Applications are handled on a first-come, first-served basis. If more than 50 people apply, we will let them know and move their request to the next year. If someone prefers, they can still apply and pay for a bay themselves.