London boroughs have agreed to raise parking and traffic penalty charges for the first time since 2011.

The new penalty charges and fees will come into effect from Monday 7 April 2025.

Boroughs say the increase is necessary to ensure penalty charge notices (PCN) remain effective deterrents and properly incentivise drivers to drive and park safely, says London Daily News.

Boroughs highlight that the money raised by PCNs cannot go into their general funds for any purpose. Instead, local authorities have a legal duty to ensure any net revenue raised by PCNs is reinvested in traffic and transport schemes.

In London this includes paying for the Freedom Pass providing free public transport for 1.2 million older and disabled Londoners.

With some PCN levels having been unchanged for 14 years and others for 18 years, boroughs were concerned that charge levels were not high enough to encourage compliance.

The number of PCNs issued in the capital has increased by around 70% since 2010 (from 4.8 million in 2009-10 to 8.3 million in 2023-24).

The impact of inflation on penalty charge levels has meant a reduction in the real value of these charges and additional fees over time. The costs to boroughs for providing a parking and traffic management service have also increased significantly since 2011.

Following a public consultation, the decision was made by London Councils’ Transport and Environment Committee, which is responsible for setting parking, bus lane and moving traffic penalty charges on borough roads, plus additional parking fees.

The increase brings the highest level of boroughs’ PCNs in line with the penalty charges on roads managed by Transport for London, which were raised in 2022. The changes agreed by London Councils’ Transport and Environment Committee have received the required approval from the Mayor of London and were not objected to by the Secretary of State for Transport.

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