400,000 parking fines as councils owed millions

year, bringing in 3.3m in revenue for the authority.

A spokesman said: “Leeds is the largest city in the region and we would expect to issue the most parking tickets, collect the most money and have the most unpaid fines – despite our collection rate being higher than the national average.

“Parking tickets are only ever issued where motorists have parked outside of restrictions which are quite clearly marked and visible.”

Leeds’s total of more than 127,000 parking tickets was more than double that of Sheffield, the next-largest city. However, Sheffield oversaw by far the largest year-on-year increase in parking fines last year – 30 per cent more tickets were issued than during the previous year.

Sheffield has also introduced the biggest rise in traffic warden numbers. The city council now employs 54 enforcement officers, up from 36 four years ago.

Our study also shows rural councils employ very few traffic wardens and hand out very few tickets. This is partly because many smaller authorities have opted not to decriminalise on-street parking offences, leaving ticketing in the hands of police.

Councils such as Selby therefore only enforce parking in its own car parks.

Selby employs just three part-time parking inspectors and issued 241 tickets last year.