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Top 10 streets for parking fines revealed
Westminster's most lucrative street for parking fines rakes in more than £300,000 for the council, it was revealed this week.
Baker Street in Marylebone was named as the highest earner for the council, with £321,000 generated in the 12 months to March 31, 2011.
The top four streets - Baker Street, along with Queensway in Bayswater, Wardour Street and Great Marlborough Street, both in Soho - each brought in more than a quarter of a million pounds to council coffers.
The total parking fine income for all of Westminster in the 2010/11 financial year topped £22.9million.
Stuart Bonar, a Marylebone resident who obtained the figures using the Freedom of Information Act, said: "The lack of places to park in Westminster's narrow, packed streets and the sheer numbers of people who want to drive into central London mean the council is blessed with a money-making asset.
"The limited space for parking means people area almost bound to take a risk and see if they can park without picking up a ticket.
"As this information reveals, often they're wrong and get a parking ticket slapping on their windscreen.
"It's a cliche to say that the streets of London are paved with gold, but for Westminster Council at least maybe there's some truth to that."
Councillor Lee Rowley, Westminster Council's head of parking and transportation, said the number of parking fines issued in the last five years had actually dropped from 1.1 million to around 470,000 in the last year.
He added: "Every penny that comes in through parking fines is spent on other aspects of what the council does.
"It goes on improving the council's streets, it goes into making big improvements in the centre of London, it goes to older people and older people's transport packages.
"We're very open and transparent about this.
"There's a report on the council's website saying what the income from parking fines is and what we spend it on.
"By law, we're not allowed to use parking fines purely to raise money but we are charged with the responsibility of keeping the city's streets moving.
"We're determined to try and ensure that people don't get tickets, by not parking incorrectly in the first place."
The top 10 most lucrative streets for parking fines (to nearest £1,000)
Baker Street, Marylebone - £321,000
Queensway, Bayswater - £317,000
Wardour Street, Soho - £296,000
Great Marlborough Street, Soho - £271,000
South Wharf Road, Paddington - £236,000
St Martin's Lane, West End - £233,000
Savile Row, West End - £226,000
Harrow Road, North Paddington - £211,000
Prince Consort Road, South Kensington - £210,000
Great Cumberland Place, Marylebone - £208,000
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