The power to enforce parking regulations in Angus “can’t come quickly enough”, according to the leader of Angus Council.
The UK Government has made amendments to the Scotland Bill to allow Holyrood to tackle inconsiderate parking.
Legislation must wait for the next term of the Scottish Parliament but the local authority plans to have community wardens enforce yellow lines and restrictions as soon as possible.
Councillor Iain Gaul said the rise of inconsiderate parking can be attributed to people knowing there is little chance of being caught.
He said: “We don’t have issues with parking in Angus we have a problem with inconsiderate and thoughtless parking.
“We’d rather they thought about what their actions are doing to their neighbours and other road users, but that’s never going to happen.
“They want to park closest to whatever shop they’re going to and hell mend everyone else.
“Bringing in wardens is part of our solution to that. When we get those powers from Transport Scotland we will enforce them.
“Drivers will be issued with parking tickets and fined and we will pursue those if they’re not paid.
“We’ve done our bit but, in the greater scheme of things, parking in Angus burghs is not hugely important and we now have to go through the civil service machine.
“Once we come out of the other end of it, we will see a difference.”
Under the Angus scheme, already approved by councillors, drivers would be fined £60 if caught on double yellow lines, reduced to £30 for prompt payment.
Council bosses hope this will help to tackle the perceived ‘free for all’ on Angus streets since the police withdrew from enforcing parking offences.
The local authority approved the use of two community wardens as “parking police” under plans to fine people parking on single and double yellow lines, and ticket those whose cars linger in time-limited parking spaces.
Parking has been free in Angus since the transitional council formed in 1996 but a business case to Scottish ministers has retained the possibility of its reintroduction.
This was referred to full council by Bill Bowles and David Fairweather, who lost a vote to banish charged parking “forever” by 21 councillors to six.