Parking fees could rise during Christmas market

Parking charges could go up during major events in York such as the Christmas market, the city council has said.

A public consultation has opened to source people's views on cost-saving measures that could reduce a £30m gap in the budget in 2025.

A 10% rise in parking fees for visitors during events and on Saturdays has been proposed, as well as a regular hike to £4.85 per hour for council-run car parks. A 4.99% increase in council tax has also been suggested.

City of York Council finance spokesperson Katie Lomas said the consultation was about "gauging the appetite" for the proposals, rather than voting on what would be implemented.

She said: "We can't go through everything the council spends money on line-by-line and ask people about it, but it is helpful to hear people's views on the things that we're thinking about.

"It's really difficult when you have to do a consultation on the difficult decisions that we as politicians were elected to make."

The increase in council tax would be the equivalent of a £96.99 a year hike on a Band D property.

But the Local Democracy Reporting Service said that Liberal Democrat opposition leader Nigel Ayre said parking increases would come as the council looked to cut vehicle use, raising questions over the amount of revenue they could raise.

The proposals to increase fees for visitors during events such as the St Nicholas Fair could generate £230,000 on top of the £1m earned from other parking charge hikes.

The higher rate for council car parks would apply to the first two hours per customer, after which the fee would drop to £4.10.

People with Minister Badges would still get a 10% discount for the duration of the two-year permit.

Free parking for Blue Badge holders would also continue in council car parks.

The consultation also deals with residents' parking permits and seeks views on a 5% rise in the charge for one car and a 10% increase for a second permit. Low emission vehicles would also lose their discount.

Installing additional CCTV cameras to enable Blue Badge holders to access the city centre, as opposed to using external contractors, has also been floated.

Opinions are also being sought on reducing some recycling banks and requiring the Make It York tourism and events body to become financially self-sufficient.

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