3:24pm Monday 1st March 2010
BUSINESSES today slammed council chiefs for moving to raise car parking charges.
High Wycombe shops said the move by Wycombe District Council said the move would deter visitors.
The authority is proposing raising charges by up to 25 per cent with 30p and 50 rises in Easton Street and Swan multi-storey car parks.
The £1.50 flat rate will also be abolished at the two in favour of free parking after 9pm.
And on-street parking will rise from 50p to £1 or £2 at more than 40 town streets. The changes will be subject to a public consultation and would take effect in September.
See the link at the bottom of this story for the full charges, which also affect Marlow, Bourne End and Wooburn Green.
Melanie Williams, town centre manager for the High Wycombe Town Partnership, which represents major stores, said: “The majority of our members have reacted negatively to the car parking increases with one independent calling it ‘complete madness’.
“Other local businesses feel the increases are fair and are consistent with encouraging longer dwell times.
“But given that the recovery of the retail sector is likely to be fragile and protracted this is not the right time.
“Members who are slightly outside of the town centre will of course be less affected by the changes and are more concerned with where the extra funds will be spent”
Rod Braybrooke, of the Marlow Chamber of Trade, blasted the 10p increase to 70p for parking up to one hour in the town's car park.
He said: "It doesn't sound much but it is another nail in the coffin for motorists.
"I think motorists are going to think they are being taxed even higher. It is exorbitant."
Russell Lacey, manager of Desborough Pets in Desborough Road, said: “How can the council justify this? I am amazed.
“Eden is great for the town, don't get me wrong, but we get very little spill over from it, shoppers go into the High Street and the Chilterns but very few come this way.
“So doubling the on-street parking and the hike in prices in the Desborough car park will certainly hit this area of town.”
Adam Driver, partner of Hurst Estate Agents in Crendon Street, said the charges were a “stealth tax”.
He said they will “discourage people from shopping or even working here”.
Heather Simpson, a receptionist from Williams opticians in Queen Victoria Road, who parks at Easton Street, said: “It's ridiculous – the council say it is trying to attract more people into the town to shop but, in fact, they are going to put people off by upping car parking charges.
“I'm currently working a three days a week at the moment and the parking here is already that expensive, that me and a few others often get our partners to drop us into work.
“There are people here working five or six day weeks, paying £7.50 a day to park, soon people won't want to come here because they won't be able to afford parking – the council is killing High Wycombe."
The changes mean Easton Street and the Swan will have the same parking charges as the Eden multi-storey car park up to four hours.
Yet the WDC car parks are cheaper after that. They are £4 up to six hours compared to £8 at Eden and Easton Street is £3.50 up to five hours compared to £5 at Eden.
Parking is free after 6.30pm at car parks run by Aylesbury Vale District Council (see link, bottom of story).
Council spokesman Catherine Spalton said: “We last reviewed the tariffs in our car parks in 2007/08; the county council had last reviewed the on-street tariffs in 2006.
“Since those reviews, there have been a number of developments across the district which have influenced people's parking patterns.
“The proposed changes that cabinet will consider - which would be open to public consultation and would not come into effect until September - take this and other factors into consideration.”
The last review encountered major public opposition, including The Bucks Free Press’ ‘Let Us Park Mrs Clarke!’ campaign, which called on WDC leader Councillor Lesley Clarke to review the rises.
It lowered several planned charges as a result (see link below).
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