As a resident in Sunny Gardens Road experiencing the safe and peaceful joy brought to our road by the launch of the new extended controlled parking zone (CPZ), I was angered to read Diane David's letter (What has CPZ achieved but irritation?', Letters, April 12) criticising the scheme.

For years the road was jammed with outsiders' vehicles which resulted in a narrow one-way street and traffic congestion.

This effect was caused by lazy car owners who would not park in the Garden Hospital's own perfectly adequate car park, university students allergic to public transport, and Tube users paying a few pence less because of cheaper tickets due to Hendon Central's zone 3/4 boundary status.

Today the area along Sunny Gardens Road and Sunningfields Road is a noticeably quieter, wider, and more peaceful place with two-way traffic and little congestion. Outsiders know that they have to pay up if they wish to park here, so they no longer drive around to find a place, reducing the traffic levels considerably.

The CPZ is a joy to us locals and proves once again that the only way that selfish car owners wake up and pay attention to the plight they cause is when they are hit in the wallet.

Nick Lansley Sunny Gardens Road, Hendon