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Train users still caught out by 'wrong' car park

Martin Heath
BBC News, Northamptonshire
Justin Baker Justin Baker with short white hair and glasses, holding a phone to the camera and wearing a blue sweater and black shirt. He is standing by a railway ticket machine. A departure screen is just visible in the upper right of the picture. Departure boards can also be seen on a brick station wall.Justin Baker
Justin Baker finally got his penalty charges cancelled after his MP intervened

A year on from the BBC's story about motorists being fined for paying for the "wrong" car park at a village railway station, people are still being caught out.

Long Buckby station, near Daventry, Northamptonshire, has two car parks run by separate operators, and motorists have been given tickets despite believing they have paid the correct parking online.

They say parking apps and signage onsite needs to be made clearer to avoid the confusion.

One of the parking companies said additional signage had been installed at the site.

Long Buckby has a car park with 29 spaces run by company called Saba and another with more than 200 spaces run by Total Parking Solutions (TPS).

Anyone who searches online for parking facilities is usually directed to the smaller site to pay - and do not realise they are not entitled to use the larger section when they arrive.

Frustrated motorists then receive a parking charge notice (PCN) because they have not paid to use the larger car park.

The issue was highlighted by BBC Online in March 2024, when TPS said its aim was "absolute clarity for motorists always".

Suzie Cronin Suzie Cronin with long dark brown hair smiling at the camera and wearing a denim jacket with a white top underneath.Suzie Cronin
Suzie Cronin said having two car parks at the same station was a "stupid set up"

But motorist Suzie Cronin said: "We parked there just before Christmas, paid on the app, now have a fine.

"I've appealed the fine, sent in all the proof and still they won't back down."

She described the two separate car parks as "a stupid set up".

Martin Heath/BBC Car park seen from above. There is a tree in the foreground. There are cars parked in almost every space. There is a section to the right separated from the rest by a low height bar.Martin Heath/BBC
The car park to the left and the rest of the parking area belong to different owners

Justin Baker, from Whilton, paid for parking on three separate days using an app and ended up receiving PCNs totalling £300.

He appealed to TPS and then to the POPLA appeals service, but he lost both times.

He contacted Daventry MP Stuart Andrew, who got in touch with TPS. He was told that additional signage had been installed in its car park to make the position clearer for motorists, and anyone who paid the wrong operator by mistake was offered a £20 reduced charge.

Total Parking Solutions Sign in a car park in white writing with blue background, which states that drivers who have paid Saba must park in the smaller car park. It includes a diagram. There are cars parked behind the sign and a railway line is visible to the left.Total Parking Solutions
A new sign has been installed by Saba, which runs the smaller car park
Total Parking Solutions Sign in black writing on yellow background telling drivers Saba payments are "not valid in this car park". There is a car park behind in which a white van is parked. There are trees beyond the car park.Total Parking Solutions
TPS has also installed signage in its car park telling drivers that Saba payments are not valid

Mr Baker said he had offered to pay £20 for each PCN but this was rejected by TPS.

After the MP's intervention, TPS finally agreed to cancel the charges "as a gesture of goodwill".

But Mr Baker added: "I still fear the underlying issues - TPS's procedures and the app's signage - will not be improved for others."

TPS said: "Total Parking Solutions Ltd has installed additional signage in the car park to inform motorists that Saba payments are not valid in this location."

Saba has been contacted by the BBC for a response.

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