Proposed charges for on-street parking in Hoylake and elsewhere in Wirral have been axed by the council.
Following critical feedback from Wirral residents and businesses, Wirral Council has announced today that it is shelving plans to charge for on-street parking across the borough. Hoylake was one the villages affected by the proposals and would have seen motorists having to pay for parking at local car parks (such as the Carr Lane car park pictured above) and on various streets including Market Street.
Visitors to local country parks such as Royden Park will still potentially face a parking fee though this will be less than the original proposal of £4 per visit.
Commenting on the revised proposals Cllr Davies said: “While the original proposals from officers helped close the yawning funding gap the council faces, it was clear the impact of these charges on our tourism and small business economy would do more harm than good.”
He continues: “Regular park users were unhappy with what seemed an excessive charge, so we have reduced the car parking proposal to 50p an hour with a maximum of £2 per day. This helps us cover the cost of maintaining the parks and the footpaths without deterring visitors.”
What are your thoughts?
A temporary reprieve.
Strategy was clear: propose something outrageous, then retreat in the face of the outrage duly provoked, giving the impression of being “reasonable”. and having achieved, in all likelihood, what they were realistically hoping for.
They’ll be back again in the future – pushing for on-street charges again, and trying to jack up the charges in the country parks they’ll be introducing this year.
What a pity we didn’t see the same level of public outcry when WBC were cutting services and facilities for the disabled.
The revenue from the proposed parking charges could have been raised by axing 22 Councillors at an average of £14,000 each.
Funny thye did not agree to that!!!
Thanks for highlighting this – I had no idea. Just goes to show that all options are not being considered!
Agree with Mike above. Hit then with a large charge then reduce it to a lower rate in the face of opposition.