PARKING wardens could soon be a regular sight on the streets of Wokingham.

At the moment parking enforcement is managed by Thames Valley Police but if papers put before the executive are approved Wokingham Borough Council would take over.

A report submitted to the borough council suggests one in four drivers flout the law at will because police devote little time to enforcing it.

Wokingham is the only borough in the Thames Valley Police area that has not already taken over parking enforcement.

The report says the police consider the problem "a low priority for them and apply little resource to it...

"This results in a large number of complaints to the borough council about illegal parking and the abuse of parking restrictions as drivers feel they will not be caught."

Cllr John Kaiser, executive member for planning and highways said the new powers would be 'cost neutral' and crack down on problem parkers.

He said: "One in four vehicles park illegally in and around the borough’s town centres, according to a survey we carried out earlier this year. And our residents tell us they want us to have these powers to stop this.

“We’ve held off for a few years because contrary to popular belief, not all councils make vast sums from parking tickets, and obviously we don’t want to saddle our borough’s public purse with this burden.

“This means we’re considering several options on how to run the service to ensure it is cost neutral. We’re also looking at how the other Berkshire local authorities are running theirs’. It is important we get this right for our residents.

“The benefits are great. Having the ability to manage parking borough wide means we can keep traffic moving in problem places, improve road safety, help the environment, boost public transport and sustainable travel choices and free up kerb space currently being abused.”

Applying to take over parking management will take between 18 and 24 months and cost £34,000 a year.