Fans finally wake up to car parking cost plans at new York Community Stadium

We pointed out 2 weeks ago that the proposed £10 parking charge at the new Community Stadium would be amongst the highest in the lower leagues (football and rugby).

Its a real shame that there hasn’t been any consultation with supporter organisations on the issue.

Charges at public car parks near Bootham Crescent are less than half that with many drivers taking the opportunity to park for free on the streets.

The Tory transport supremo seems wedded to the idea.

Lets hope it does’t impact too badly on attendance levels.

Auditors probe York Council parking discounts

It appears that officials at the York Council have been selling parking spaces at a discount to some local hoteliers.

2015 off street parking charges click

Several hotels don’t have their own parking spaces and direct guests to Council car parks. It appears that they may have been sold scratch cards (which entitle the holder to park for 24 hours) at a rate below commercial levels.

A report, considered by a Council official on Thursday, suggests that the discounts had not be formally authorised and auditors have now been called in to assess the level of any loss.

A temporary replacement scheme is being introduced which will reflect the current commercial 24-hour parking rates (£12 per day). The new scratch card will not be available for short stay (premium) car parks like Castle and Esplanade.

Season ticket parking charges 2015 click

The Council says that it will ask the responsible Executive member to consider whether a more commercially viable offer can be made to hoteliers. The Council is next due to revise its car parking charges in February.

It is not known how much the unauthorised discount on scratch cards has cost taxpayers.

Scratch cards are sometimes used by Council officials and have promoted some Freedom of Information enquires in the past. Here and here

Respark charges 2015 click

An annual contract parking season ticket at the Foss Bank car park currently costs £770.

The Councils web site gives details of the Visitor Permit System (click). Visitor permits – restricted to Respark zones – come in books of 5, each book costs £5.50. Local residents may buy a maximum of 6 books per calendar month and 40 books in a year.

Details of Guest House permits costs can be found by clicking here

Free evening car parking on 19th November

There will be no parking charges on the evening of Thursday 19th November when the City launches its Christmas activities programme.

The concession represents a step back from the situation which applied prior to 2011 when free parking was allowed on each late night shopping day in the run up to Christmas. As such it is likely to be of limited value to those retailers who are being urged to stay open until at least 8:00pm.

The decision is expected to cost the York Council around £2000 in lost income.

Unfortunately once again the decision was taken behind closed doors with the agenda and background papers for the meeting only being published after the decsion had been taken

York “free car parking” offer to be abandoned on 31st March

The scheme was introduced last year but was criticised for being complicated, applying to only some car parks and only for a limited number of days & hours.

Another Alexander project abandoned

Traders have confirmed that the offer – which cost £300,000 to subsidise – has had little effect on the number of customers that they have been getting.

A plan to pay for the scheme, using funds from a Business Improvement District organisation, appears to have fallen through

The scheme was the controversial brainchild of the former Council Leader James Alexander who was struggling to cope with traders anger in the wake of the Lendal bridge closure fiasco as well as fears that the new John Lewis store at Monks Cross would pull shoppers away from the City centre.

It will be a “double whammy” for visitors to the City centre from 1st April as a proposal by Green Councillors, to raise hourly parking charges by 10p, will also kick in.

Parking changes from 1 April will also effect on street parking and season permits across the city,

• The standard rate of car park and on-street charges: will increase by 10p per hour to vehicles not displaying a Minster Badge (an optional resident parking permit).

• Residents who are signed up to the Minster Badge scheme: will benefit from an additional FREE hour in car parks on Friday and Saturday evening (which moves from 5pm instead of 6pm). Valid in selected car parks only.

• Pay-by-phone option (in selected car parks) remains 10p cheaper per hour than the standard rate.

• Season parking tickets: An increase of approximately four per cent.

From the end of March the council will also be installing new tariff boards in all council car parks to display the new charges.

For more details about parking in York visit www.york.gov.uk/parking

Travelling in York? Plan journeys in advance by using the online Journey Planner at www.itravelyork.info