Traffic Management Act 2004

95 Application of surplus income from parking places

(1) Section 55 of the Road Traffic Regulation Act 1984 (financial provisions relating to income and expenditure of local authority in connection with parking places) is amended as follows.

(2) In subsection (4), for paragraph (d) (purposes for which surplus may be applied if further off-street parking not needed) substitute—

“(d) if it appears to the local authority that the provision in their area of further off-street parking accommodation is unnecessary or undesirable, the following purposes—

(i) meeting costs incurred, whether by the local authority or by some other person, in the provision or operation of, or of facilities for, public passenger transport services,

(ii) the purposes of a highway or road improvement project in the local authority’s area,

(iii) in the case of a London authority, meeting costs incurred by the authority in respect of the maintenance of roads maintained at the public expense by them,

(iv) the purposes of environmental improvement in the local authority’s area,

(v) in the case of such local authorities as may be prescribed, any other purposes for which the authority may lawfully incur expenditure;”

(3) After subsection (4A) insert—

“(4B) For the purposes of subsection (4)(d)(iv) “environmental improvement” includes—

(a) the reduction of environmental pollution (as defined in the Pollution Prevention and Control Act 1999 (c. 24); see section 1(2) and (3) of that Act);

(b) improving or maintaining the appearance or amenity of—

(i) a road or land in the vicinity of a road, or

(ii) open land or water to which the general public has access; and

(c) the provision of outdoor recreational facilities available to the general public without charge.

(4C) Regulations for the purposes of subsection (4)(d)(v) above—

(a) may prescribe all local authorities, particular authorities or particular descriptions of authority,

(b) may make provision by reference to whether the authority or authorities in question have been classified for the purposes of any other enactment as falling or not falling within a particular category, and

(c) may make provision for the continued application of that provision, in prescribed cases and to such extent as may be prescribed, where an authority that is prescribed or of a prescribed description ceases to be so.”.

(4) In section 100(2) of the Local Government Act 2003 (c. 26) (powers exercisable by reference to performance categories under that Act), before paragraph (a) insert—

“(za) to make regulations for the purposes of section 55(4)(d)(v) of the Road Traffic Regulation Act 1984;”.