A STREET in Reading has racked up the most parking fines in the town, according to the latest penalty charge notice data available from Reading Borough Council.

Research by Able Systems, which provides mobile printers for traffic wardens, reveals Oxford Road as the street which received the most parking violations in 2019.

The number of parking fines handed out by the council has gradually increased in recent years.

In 2019, 48,240 tickets were issued to motorists in Reading.

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Laura Newton, solicitor and partner at law firm, Smith Bowyer Clarke, specialises in Road Transport Law and Motoring Law.

Laura explains what you should do if you receive a parking fine.

She said: “Never ignore a parking fine if you receive one.

"Your local council is open to communicating with you, and, if they apply, will consider discretionary reasons or circumstances surrounding your fine.

"Hoping the fine will automatically go away will only make the situation worse.

"If you do ignore it, it can become enforced by the courts. You can contest the fine as long as you believe you have a genuinely valid reason to do so.”

The information was requested as part of a nationwide project looking at parking fines in the UK.

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The research found Edinburgh had the highest number of penalty charge notices (PCNs) in each of the three years analysed.

Data for 2020 was not requested due to the impact of lockdowns on travel within the town which has likely meant no direct comparison can be made from data gathered during the pandemic.

A Reading Borough Council spokesperson said: "Parking enforcement is carried out to keep traffic moving and to keep all road users safe.

"This is particularly important in towns like Reading, or cities, where there are very many demands on the limited road space available.

“As a major artery into Reading town centre, carrying the town’s most heavily-used and frequent bus routes, and a busy destination in its own right, it is no surprise to see the Oxford Road listed as the place with the most parking violations.

"The Council itself openly publishes a detailed report on parking and bus lane enforcement every year in January at https://www.reading.gov.uk/council/policies-finance-and-legal-information/freedom-of-information-foi/#parking.

“It is also important to say that by law all income received from parking enforcement activity has to be invested into transport initiatives in Reading.”