Dear LPG, 

I am fortunate, and I know it. I am well into my eighties and still able to drive my car around the streets of Lewisham, although there are a few challenges which have nothing to do with getting my car from A to B.

I live on a street in the middle of a controlled parking zone, and my front garden was not designed to accommodate my flowers as well as my car, which means that, as well as insurance, tax and an MOT test, I have to pay for resident parking each year. But even though I don't go very far, there is something liberating about knowing that if I want to get out and about, I can negotiate the streets, day or night, in relative safety. It is an expensive business, but it is what I choose to spend my money on. 

The council are doing very well out of me, though. 

For the past two years, I have forgotten  my residential parking renewal date until I decided to pop out and get to the car, only to realise I had a parking ticket because my parking permit has expired.  

That is when I contacted Lewisham Parking to pay for the coming year.  

I have said all this because there are two points that I would like to make about resident parking in Lewisham, which might apply to quite a few other boroughs throughout the UK and that other older drivers might not be aware of.

While the council encourages online renewals, knowing there's an alternative is essential. For those who find online processes daunting, you can still renew your parking by phone. Just call the council parking department and renew using your debit card. Their number is 020 8787 5397.

The second thing is that every car owner who pays for a residential parking space is entitled to 10 hours of free visitor parking credit each year, and those hours accrue. I learned I am entitled to 40 hours of free parking this year. Although their website also implies that you must arrange it all online, you can do this by phone if you need someone to park outside your gate for a while.   I suspect that they are not the only borough that does this.

There is one last point…

You might still have some old-fashioned tickets if you have been a resident street car parker for years like me. I found the ones pictured in a drawer when looking for the other details. I checked when I phoned, and the good news is that they are also still valid, so don't throw them away.

RR, Catford.

RR shares the council’s information on Residential Parking…

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