Scarborough Council drops plan to introduce winter parking charges

The executive met today (Tuesday) following a damning meeting of the council’s overview and scrutiny board yesterday in which councillors and business owners attacked the “confusing” plans.

The cabinet voted last month to implement a £1 for 24 hours charge for parking in some of the borough’s car parks from November to March. There was previously no charge.

That decision also created a residents “virtual” parking permit, which would give people living in the borough a cheaper rate of payment in car parks. The cost for non-residents would increase at the same time.

However, the cabinet today voted to bring in the residents permit for a trial period next year but without the winter parking charge element.

It followed a call-in by Independent councillor Janet Jefferson, who argued that as parking was split between the borough and county councils on the seafront of Scarborough and Whitby it would lead to “confusion”.

The decision to drop the winter parking charge will leave the council having to find £84,000 to cover the cost of the permit scheme for its first year.

Despite the approving change, some councillors on the cabinet still expressed support for charging during the winter months.

Cllr Sandra Turner (Con) said: “We really did want to see the implementation of residents permits and the reduction in the charge for them but there’s always, as with everything in this council, a financial cost to that and what concerns me greatly is trying to make the savings required across the board.

“I have given a great deal of thought to this as we represent residents and traders alike but there comes a time where we have to think of the residents and give them some benefit within this borough and I particularly can’t see a problem with a £1 charge to subsidise that as we still have to find the £84,000.”

The cabinet voted to drop the winter parking scheme and send the plan to the authority’s full council meeting in January.

During yesterday’s overview and scrutiny board call-in of the parking charges Scarborough seafront-based businessman James Corrigan outlined the opposition to the scheme.

He said: “I must congratulate [the borough] and the county council in developing what is the most complicated, confusing, unwelcome and ad hoc parking scheme in what must be the country and we are adding another level of confusion to that.”

Chairman of South Bay Traders Association, John Senior, added: “It is not the right thing to do to charge more, or bring a charge in, at a time when things are extremely tough.”