Subscribe to trusted local news
If you are accessing this story via Facebook but you are a subscriber then you will be unable to access the story. Facebook wants you to stay and read in the app and your login details are not shared with Facebook. If you experience problems with accessing the news but have subscribed, please contact subscriptions@thestrayferret.co.uk. In a time of both misinformation and too much information, quality journalism is more crucial than ever. By subscribing, you can help us get the story right.
- Subscription costs less than £1 a week with an annual plan.
Already a subscriber? Log in here.
24
Feb
Parking charge U-turn in North Yorkshire after furious response
North Yorkshire Council has withdrawn plans to massively increase parking tariffs and introduce nighttime and evening charges after the proposal generated fierce opposition.
Businesses and councillors in Ripon, Harrogate and Knaresborough said the proposals would devastate nighttime economies and unfairly penalise motorists.
Now the Conservative-run council has performed a U-turn four days after the plans were announced.
A 10% increase on all council on-street and off-street parking is expected — but the ‘tariff rebalancing’, which would have seen some tariffs increase by more than 300%, is not going ahead.
Neither are proposals to introduce evening and weekend parking charges where they do not currently exist.
The plans were scrapped following an informal meeting of Conservative leader Councillor Carl Les’ cabinet today.
Members of the controlling Conservatives and Independents group were not consulted on the proposals, and one group member told the Stray Ferret many Tories were “fuming”.
Councillor Andrew Williams, a member of the Conservatives and Independents group, previously described the proposals as “foolish, ill thought out and half-baked”.
Speaking this evening, he said:
I’m delighted that common sense has prevailed. I made the strongest of representations to both the leader and the cabinet member (highways chief Cllr Malcolm Taylor) about this. I felt very strongly about the proposal.
'Tariff rebalancing'
The Stray Ferret revealed on Friday (February 20) that Steve Brown, the council’s head of parking services, had proposed the ‘tariff rebalancing’ plus an additional 10% increase.
Mr Brown said it would reduce congestion and encourage people to use other forms of transport.
His report was expected to be approved by Councillor Malcolm Taylor, the executive member for highways, and Karl Battersby, the council’s corporate director for environment, on Friday this week.
But the report disappeared from the council website today. A modified version is expected before Friday’s meeting.
This evening, Cllr Les told the Stray Ferret: “The executive member is considering the proposals.”
0