The cost of municipal car parking and parking vouchers in South Ayrshire are to rise, but will still be cheaper than private car parks, after a decision taken by South Ayrshire Council.
The decision will come into effect from 1 July and is the first price rise since October 2008. The cost of parking for an hour at each of Barns Cresent, Charlotte Street and Kyle Street will now be 80 pence, an increase of 20 pence.
A rise of 15 pence per hour will apply for parking up to two hours and 10 pence per hour for up to three hours.
Parking from 7 to 24 hours will be charged at a flat fee of £4 - a total increase of 60 pence, representing a price rise of less than 9 pence per hour for parking for 7 hours - and less than 3 pence per hour for a full 24 hours parking.
The voucher scheme will also increase by a nominal amount, up by 10 pence to 80 pence.
South Ayrshire Council has been reviewing parking in the locality, after a paper presented to the Leadership Panel on 18th August 2009 approved the development of a Parking Charter.
The Charter will look at various options for local parking, including the use of income generated to remove voucher parking within Ayr and replace it with a more appropriate and user friendly system.
The Council is also looking at the viability of decriminalised parking enforcement and reviewing fines for parking offences, bringing these penalties more into line with private enterprises and other local authorities.
Speaking after the decision, Councillor Peter Convery, Portfolio Holder for Sustainability and the Environment said: "This is the first rise in Council parking charges for almost two years and still represent excellent value for money by being up to half the price of parking in other privately owned car parks."
The full car park tariffs are as follows:
| Up to (hours) |
1 |
2 |
3 |
4 |
5 |
6 |
7 |
8 |
9 |
24 |
| Old Price |
0.60 |
1.20 |
1.60 |
2.10 |
2.70 |
2.70 |
3.40 |
3.40 |
3.40 |
3.40 |
| New Price |
0.80 |
1.50 |
1.90 |
2.50 |
3.20 |
3.20 |
4.00 |
4.00 |
4.00 |
4.00 |
A quarterly season ticket will now cost £110 and an annual ticket £340, both plus VAT.
Councillor Convery concluded: "South Ayrshire Council is committed to developing a Parking Charter that promotes a parking system for motorists which is fair, easy to use and represents value for money."