Anger at plans to hike up Havant parking fees – and to charge on Sundays
PARKING charges are set to go up and Sunday charges could be introduced to rake in an extra £180,000 for Havant council.
Councillors are discussing proposals to up parking fees at 14 of the borough’s car parks as well as Beachlands on Hayling Island.
The extra income will help balance the books at the authority, which has decided not to increase council tax for the fourth year running.
Proposals for Sunday and bank holiday charges – which would be a fee of £1 for any length of stay – are being considered as a trial.
Parking charges in South Street, Emsworth, as well as Wellington Way, Waterlooville, would go up by 20p for one hour, rather than the 10p in other areas.
Brendan Gibb-Gray, from Emsworth Business Association, said it would be a bad move.
He said: ‘I know why they have done it, but I don’t think they have taken into account the impact on shops and businesses properly.
‘It will deter people who are going to buy a loaf of bread and a few rashers of bacon.’
He was strongly opposed to Sunday parking charges.
He said: ‘There’s absolutely no proven need for wardens enforcing the regulations on a Sunday.
‘It’s just a revenue-raising exercise.’
Kate Turner, chairman of residents’ panel Havant and Bedhampton Community First, said it was fairer to increase parking charges than increase council tax.
But she added: ‘My only real concern is whether it would affect people coming into the shopping centres and I think Emsworth would be badly hit.’
Havant leader Tony Briggs said: ‘We will be putting in price increases over three years to help keep council tax down and that is what’s happening.
‘We are looking at each individual shopping area to see how we can help, particularly with on-street car parking.
‘We are looking at the amount of free parking we can provide. It’s a balance. It’s not just putting everything up.’
He added: ‘If you can afford to run a motor car, quite clearly you can afford to put petrol in it, you can afford a modest amount of parking.
‘They are very modest increases.’
No final decision has been made.
The yearly return of the increases would be £180,000, but this would be reduced to around £150,000 for the 2012/2013 financial year if the new charges were introduced in June.
THE PROPOSALS
Charges proposed to go from 70p to 80p for one hour, £1.50 to £1.60 for two hours, and £2.20 to £3 for up to four hours at Mission Lane, Rockville Drive, Greywell, Tidworth, East Pallant, Town End House, Prince George Street, Elmleigh Road, Palmers Road, North Street, Elm Grove, and Hayling Island Health Centre. Proposed increase of 70p to 90p for one hour and £1.50 to £1.80 for up to two hours at Wellington Way, Waterlooville and South Street, Emsworth, with new £3 rate for up for four hours.
New high and low season introduced at Beachlands. Increase of £1 to £1.20 for one hour, £2 to £2.40 for two hours. Free parking from November to February.
Proposed parking charges for free Bridge Road car park, Emsworth.
, with parking permits available for residents.
Sunday charges trialled at Wellington Way, South Street, Greywell, Prince George Street and Mengham
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Thursday 24 May 2012
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Comments
There are 15 comments to this article
Page 1 of 1
Dingo
Wednesday, February 15, 2012 at 01:03 PMDave has it right if you have a car or a bus pass it will be cheaper to shop in Havant!! As for franjan's coments?Blame Blair & Brown and all the other Labour sausages that got us into this mess in the first place! How can anyone ever vote for Labour again when the secretary to the treasury leaves a childish note saying"we've spent it all"
dave3974
Sunday, February 5, 2012 at 07:22 PMthe answer is simple shop elsewhere , boycott these areas
mrsfletch
Friday, February 3, 2012 at 01:14 PMI would object less to this charges hike if the machines gave change or credited you for the amount of money you actually put in. Havant Council are already stealing thousands a week from us by not giving change. Why not adjust the charges a little so that if we put a pound coin in, we actually get a pound's worth of time on the ticket, AND we can have just 20p or 50p's worth of time for a quick dash to the shops. Don't bullshit us and say it would be too hard to design a machine like that, it already has to work out how much you put in to print the ticket! It would actually be cheaper in the long run, because if you make it charging per minute, you only have to adjust the amount per minute if an increase is really necessary - and this one is NOT justified. No-one would notice so much if they got a few minutes less for what they put in, and it would be MUCH cheaper to alter all the signage.
Graham Wheatley
Thursday, February 2, 2012 at 08:04 PMHe could always buy a car......
Pompey BD
Thursday, February 2, 2012 at 04:51 PMLOL @ Yocal! I park for free so I want a refund on my parking. LOL. Expect nothing. Receive it in abundance! You'll be complaining you don't get a bus pass next because you're not old enough but you feel old so should get one. LOL.
Anonymous Coward
Tuesday, January 31, 2012 at 05:52 PM@8 I like that idea!
Budgie One
Monday, January 30, 2012 at 07:47 PMDISGUSTING. nuff said.
Graham Wheatley
Monday, January 30, 2012 at 07:14 PMYocal (3), they're not being 'given' anything, just having it refunded in exchange for their custom. If that grates with you, then you could always buy a ticket anyway, stick one half on your bell and then get a refund on the other portion at the checkout. That way it will seem like you're also 'getting something'. LOL.
lovemydog
Monday, January 30, 2012 at 04:09 PMYocal @ 3..... cyclists and bus users don't get that subsidy....... Of course they don't, as they haven't had to pay in the car park. ha Cyclist don't pay to park anyway..... your turn will come.
griffon
Monday, January 30, 2012 at 03:20 PMThey had to choose between hitting motorist and shopekeepers or CT payers to decided on the people who have the most votes. That's politics-not that either choice would have made much difference in a one party town like Havant.
Sam_of_Hayling
Monday, January 30, 2012 at 02:16 PMShould it be any suprise that the first person who gets hit in a revenue generating exercise is the motorist? Next we’ll be charged to park on our driveways.
BrigitteB
Monday, January 30, 2012 at 02:03 PMInstead of selling their surplus parking area, The Bear Hotel should let you park there for a reduced (lower than the Council's) rate! - Just a thought!
Yocal
Monday, January 30, 2012 at 01:50 PMOne car park in Waterlooville is subsidised by the shops. That is car drivers get a parking refund when they buy something, us cyclists and bus users don't get that subsidy.
raycblue
Monday, January 30, 2012 at 01:01 PMPeople like Brendan Gibb-Gray tend to moan just for the sake of it. A revenue raising excercise...of course it is. For what other reason do we pay for parking anywhere?. Regarding the loaf of bread and a few rashers,well just sort life out a bit better and don't live from day to day. Of course it's better to raise charges rather than council tax. Why should I pay more so someone can park in Emsworth for free.
franjan5332
Monday, January 30, 2012 at 11:43 AMWell, it's goodbye Leigh Park then. What Havant Council are saying effectively is, that if we go down this route and craftily tax individual groups we will bring in the same amount in tax as we would if we had done the honest thing and hiked the Council Tax. Our councillors are rather like Cameron and Osborne, as bent as a straight corkscrew, they wouldn't know honesty if was painted on them.
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