An overhaul of the county’s parking system could spell the end of residents’ traffic woes as they battle for car spaces on their streets.

A new delivery plan for on-street parking was given the nod by Bucks County Council’s cabinet on Monday (July 9).

The government requires councils to have a clear plan for parking to ease congestion in the area, improve road safety, and ensure the needs of disabled people are met.

Virtual permits, cashless parking and a review of free time-limited waiting bays, which have been branded “inefficient and time-consuming to enforce”, are among the proposals.

Speaking at the meeting, cabinet member for transport councillor Mark Shaw, said: “[The parking delivery plan] is to make things clearer, quicker, and more effective when dealing with parking issues.

“It is clearly more of an urban answer than a rural answer, but it is also protecting those hearts in our rural hinterland, especially those small shopping parades, so and such forth.”

The council has also pledged to tackle “anti-social parking” caused by commuters by launching schemes to “make the best use of kerb space” while reducing displaced parking in other areas.

Plans include introducing time curfews on parking spaces and painting “advisory” lines in front of homes and driveways to prevent “careless” parking – however, they will have no legal standing.

The draft plan states: “Parking issues have the potential to be very contentious, partly due to the difficulty in gauging the problem area and level of support for ‘something to be done’ locally.

“Looking at too small an area often results in solving one problem by displacing it to another adjacent street resulting in more calls to do something about the parking.

“Localised engagement also helps in potentially resolving contentious aspects and has the potential to reduce the number of objections at the statutory consultation stage when the traffic orders are formally advertised.”

Plans to annually review parking charges are also highlighted in the report, as well as more rigorous enforcement on drivers who misuse blue badges for the disabled.

Leader of BCC, Martin Tett, said: “There is probably no more emotive issue in my area than parking.

Either people can’t find a space when they want one or people park outside people’s houses, they block roads, fire engines and ambulances can’t access vulnerable people.

“It is the most amazingly controversial topic for our residents.” The cabinet backed the plan.

To view the full list of proposed actions visit https://democracy.buckscc.gov.uk/mgConvert2PDF.aspx?ID=116791