Cabinet to up parking charges

IN ORDER to meet challenging cuts to its budget, Pembrokeshire County Council’s Cabinet will start focusing on how to make further inroads into resolving its financial shortfall next week.
Proposals to increase car parking charges are among a raft of cuts and price hikes the County Council’s Cabinet will consider on Monday, November 4.
The Council will seek to increase its annual take from car parking charges from £66,844.55 to £85,944.50. This substantial increase has also been proposed alongside increases in the cost of weekly visitor and resident parking permits.
To allow part-time workers more flexibility, the introduction of five-hour stays is also being discussed.
In his report to the Cabinet, Ian Westley, Director of Transportation, Housing and Environment, states: “The Council faces severe budget pressures. A number of the budgets that directly support street traffic management are actually a part of the general highway maintenance budget, such as yellow lines/associated signs, on-street parking bays, and Tenby pedestrianisation”.
The car parks that are already charging the public are said to increase between 10p and 20p, with seasonal car parks such as Little Haven and Broad Haven to increase around 40p, with a review being made about whether some car parks have the ‘potential’ to have charges introduced.
A Pembrokeshire County Council spokesperson told The Pembrokeshire Herald: “I doubt whether we would be considering this matter if the Council didn’t have to find £20 million in savings over the next two financial years.”