'Friendly' traffic wardens told to carry pensioners' shopping... and only issue tickets as 'a last resort'

So it is no wonder that traffic wardens are generally viewed with at least a degree of suspicion, if not downright hostility.

But the public’s opinion of one of the UK's most disliked professions could soon be set to change thanks to radical new plans designed to actually make life easier for motorists.

Traffic wardens are going to be told to issue tickets ‘only as a last resort’, under new rules to be introduced by Westminster Council.

A traffic warden puts a ticket onto a car which displays a sticker with the slogan 'I hate traffic wardens'. The new scheme could make disliking them a thing of the past

The council, the UK’s biggest employer of traffic wardens, has even decreed that motorists will be let off if they arrive at their vehicle while the warden is in the process of issuing a ticket.

The about-turn in policy is part of a raft of new measures introduced by Westminster in a bid to improve the reputation of the UK's most unpopular profession.

Wardens will be expected to help elderly people with their shopping, give directions and report missing manhole covers.

Wardens will learn the skills at customer service seminars and could be fined if they do not score highly enough.

Undercover council staff will then follow wardens and ask them questions such as ‘How long can I park here?’ to ensure that they are carrying out their duties politely and with a friendly smile.

In a bizarre twist, wardens could even be fined if they do not score well enough in the friendliness tests.

Waliur Rahman, operations manager for the council's parking contractor, told The Times: 'Parking officers have had so much negative publicity in the past, we're trying to send out a message to motorists. It's all about the quality of our customer service.

'Parking attendants are being told not only to patrol the streets, but to help a member of the public if they're struggling across the street with their suitcase.”