Opposition councillors have criticised a rise in parking fees set to cost North Yorkshire motorists more than £3.5m a year in extra charges.
North Yorkshire Council has set out plans to increase parking charges by ten per cent from April 1st, while fees will also be ‘rebalanced’ to ensure consistency across the county.
Council chiefs estimate the changes will give the authority a £3.563m boost in 2026/27
The changes will affect the council’s 170 car parks, as well as on-street parking and residents’ parking schemes.
The authority says the rebalancing is needed to ensure fairness and consistency, with parking previously overseen by North Yorkshire’s seven former borough and district councils.
The changes will see parking fees introduced on Sundays and evenings in areas of the county where parking is currently free at these times.
An additional cost is planned for second permits in existing residential zones to account for the increasing number of houses with multiple vehicles.
But the council has decided that blue badge parking will be free in all council-run car parks in future.
North Yorkshire Council’s executive member for highways and transport, Councillor Malcolm Taylor, said:
“The changes to parking charges are part of our vision for a unified system that is consistent for everyone.
“After positive discussions with disability groups, we are pleased to be able to offer free parking for blue badge holders, meaning some areas will see them removed altogether.
“We have carefully reviewed the charges to ensure they deliver the best possible value while enabling the service to remain financially self-sustaining.
“In many cases, our rates are more affordable than privately managed car parks and are competitive with those set by neighbouring authorities.”
The council says it has committed £2.4m into improving its car parks.
Of this, £2m will be used to replace the existing 430 pay-and-display machines, including new ticketless machines in 150 of its car parks.
Lighting and signage will also be improved.
Cllr Taylor added:
“We strive to improve our parking services to provide a better customer experience.
“We are investing in replacing parking machines, which will be more environmentally friendly, to save money and be more reliable.”
But opposition councillors have spoken of their dismay at the proposed changes.
Councillor Peter Lacey, leader of the Liberal Democrats group on the council, said it was “strange” that the changes were implemented in advance of local engagement to develop town investment plans.
He added:
“This cart-before-horse centralist approach by the Tory-led administration is becoming tiresome and flies in the face of its claim to aspire to become the most local large unitary.”
Councillor Arnold Warneken, from the Green Party, said:
“The Greens don’t support a blanket increase of parking charges because it depends on location.
“In many cases, if you significantly increase car parking charges then it puts pressure on residential streets as we have seen in places like Wetherby.
Councillor Stuart Parsons, leader of the North Yorkshire Independents group, added:
“If they’re going to be rebalancing the fees, they should be doing so downwards not upwards.
“They’re supposed to be encouraging people to visit our market towns but this does the opposite.”
North Yorkshire Council’s executive members have recently agreed to adopt a set of parking principles with the aim of ensuring a “consistent, fair, and forward-looking approach to parking”.
The principles would be implemented in stages, with a review of tariffs being the first. This will be followed by developing localised town parking strategies over the next year, recognising that one size doesn’t fit all.
The parking plans will be discussed at a meeting next between Cllr Taylor and the council’s corporate director of environment, Karl Battersby.
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