Scarborough council warn number of residents using parking discounts is 'low'

Though Scarborough Council has called the take-up of permits “pleasing” it has also warned that the actual use of the discounts has been low.

The scheme was brought in to allow people living in the borough to pay around 20% less in council-owned car parks if they signed up for the free permit online.

To offset the cost, the price for non-permit holders to park for one to four hours was increased.

It was hoped that the scheme would boost town centres across the borough and help local businesses.

Scarborough Council’s Overview and Scrutiny Board was today told that 1,935 permits have been applied for and issued, with nearly 700 of those issued in Scarborough town alone.

The board also heard that between April 1 and September 30 last year a total of 613,556 transactions for one to four hour stays in car parks were made, with 9,239 of those using the residents’ discount.

This means permits accounted for just 1.5% of all transactions.

There was good news on the financial side of the scheme, with the authority having budgeted for the scheme to cost approximately £84,000.

As of September 30 2019, the scheme actually had a surplus of £69,000.

Scrutiny board chairman Cllr Guy Coulson (Con) said he would like to see a fresh round of publicity so more residents may take advantage of the scheme.

A full report on the scheme’s first year is scheduled to go to May’s Overview and Scrutiny Board meeting.