Nottingham updates WPL operating model

Nottingham City Council is updated its workplace parking levy (WPL) operating model, in response to changing travel behaviours and flexible working practices.

The changes, which include an increase in the WPL staffing budget, are intended to ensure the scheme remains fit for purpose in the post-pandemic business environment.

The recovery from COVID-19 has seen a shift in travel behaviours, with more flexible and hybrid patterns of working being adopted across many business sectors. This has resulted in daily variations in employee travel behaviours when commuting to their employers’ Nottingham premises, leading to a more dynamic and variable WPL liability.

The council says there is the need for change to respond to the embedding of hybrid and flexible working by employees in the “new normal” world.

Peak period parking is now consolidated into fewer days of the week, meaning that increased resources are required to provide the same amount of compliance activity as pre-pandemic.

The updated WPL operating model will introduce new roles to deliver an “intelligence-led” approach, which will enable much greater team visibility aimed at delivering speedier employer compliance and securing and improving income generation.

The business rationale is to introduce a new role of WPL support officer, who will be directed to significantly increase the number of visual inspections for the WPL and WPC schemes across the board. This will cost £82,113.

Nottingham’s WPL scheme has a current income budget of £9.05m.

The WPL manager and NET manager have scheduled 19,100 parking spaces at a cost of £522 each – totalling £9.97m. By period 2, forecasting is indicating that over £10m is achievable. Income is likely to stay stable

It plans to measure pollution levels around schools to understand what students are exposed to during their journey to school.

Other vehicle related proposals include improving electric vehicle (EV) charging infrastructure and promoting the use of greener vehicles by offering lower parking charges for low-emission vehicles and increasing use of low-emission vehicles such as taxis by giving them priority space at ranks.

South Oxfordshire will also review options to reduce freight vehicle emissions, including weight limits and enforcement. It will look at the Henley Freight Partnership, Strategic Routing Strategy and a further weight restriction zone enforcement.

A council spokesperson said: “We are at the very early stages of our action plan and firstly, we are asking people their views on many different kinds of proposals in the Air Quality Action Plan, of which a workplace parking levy in Henley is just one.

“When the survey is concluded, council officers would then explore the feasibility and effectiveness in reducing emissions and improving air quality for local residents of this proposed measure.

“The final decision would be made by our councillors about which measures we take forward and are formally adopted in the final version of the new Air Quality Action Plan.” or increase with better compliance and management.

The decision was signed and dated on 28 June by Angela Kandola, portfolio holder for highways, transport and planning, and Sajeeda Rose, corporate director of growth and city development.

The council has considered the risk of doing nothing with the current establishment, which would lead to increased non-compliance with the WPL scheme, missed income-generating opportunities, and potential formal legal compliance action. This would significantly diminish the WPL team’s ability to conduct proactive activity.

The WPL scheme applies across the whole of the city council’s administrative boundary. Consultations were held with the WPL team, and feedback was unanimously positive.

The Major Programmes Finance team, who manage the NET model, have been engaged and understand the proposals and can see the financial benefits to the NET model in the longer term.