New national parking app being rolled out in change which could benefit millions of drivers

One change will bring relief to millions of British drivers

Parking in cities has been the bane of Brits since the first car was invented (PA Archive)

A new rule change could make life much easier for British drivers in their never-ending scramble for parking spaces.

Labour has announced a new National Parking Platform (NPP) so drivers can pay for parking on just one app rather than downloading multiple new ones.

The move, which sees the British Parking Association take over the platform, aims to provide a more flexible parking experience at no cost to the taxpayer.

Parking costs could even come down, the government hopes (Newspress)

Apps like Ring Go, JustPark and PayByPhone have joined the scheme, allowing drivers to pay for a parking space using their preferred option.

Minister for the Future of Roads, Lilian Greenwood, said she was “delighted” the scheme is being rolled out. She said: “This government is on the side of drivers and dedicated to giving everyone simpler, more flexible parking.

“This is public infrastructure done right: built by government, shaped with councils and now delivered by the sector that knows it best.”

The move will allow drivers to swerve inconsistent parking rules, accidental fines, clunky user experiences on apps and open up parking costs to market competition, the government said.

After successful trials in ten local councils, the scheme currently handles more than 500,000 transactions per month.

And now the scheme will be rolled out to more local authorities to ensure that “easier, simpler parking” is available for millions more.

Some four million penalty charge notices (PCNs) were referred to enforcement agencies in England and Wales last year (Yui Mok/PA Wire)

The RAC welcomed the move but said it would need car park operators all to agree before it makes a tangible difference to motorists.

“Paying to park a car should be one of the simplest things any driver does, but things have got much more complicated in recent years", RAC senior policy officer Rod Dennis said.

“If the arrival of a National Parking Platform removes that hassle, it's definitely a welcome move.

“But the key will be ensuring as many car park operators as possible sign up to the system.”

The move comes as drivers across England say they are being sent demands for up to £170 from private parking companies because of faulty machines.

Many car parks require users to input their vehicle registration when purchasing a ticket from a machine.

But there have been numerous cases of drivers who insist they entered their registration correctly but still received a fine.

Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander described the issue as “a problem that needs to be tackled”, while the RAC called for a Government-backed code of conduct to be reintroduced.