Some 457 parking tickets are issued on average every day across in Northern Ireland , new statistics revealed last night.

Figures released by the Department for Regional Development show how many people chance their luck on parking illegally and see the dreaded penalty notice under their windscreen wiper when they return.

This, the second year of the department’s parking enforcement contract, has seen 142,754 tickets issued since November 2007. This means an average of 2,745 tickets a week are stuck to cars throughout Northern Ireland.

With a population of about 1.75m these new figures mean that nearly 10% of Northern Ireland’s residents received a parking ticket this year. The standard fine for parking illegally is £60 but if you pay within 14 days there is a 50% discount. This means that the potential income for the department is between £4.25 and £8.5m.

There are currently 117 wardens patrolling Northern Ireland’s streets and a quick calculation reveals that they issue on average 1,220 tickets a year.

While these figures may appear high, they have dropped by 20,000 compared with 2006/07 when the contract began.

Simon Richardson, parking enforcement manager with the roads service said: “A decrease in tickets is a positive indication that our objective of encouraging people to park properly is working. If drivers heed our advice then tickets cannot be issued.”

He added: “In April this year we announced that surveys showed a significant reduction in illegal parking since the start of the new enforcement operation.”

The figures breakdown the number of tickets issued in each location — Belfast leads the way with 48,415 tickets this year while only 489 tickets were issued in Portstewart.