Parking charges set to go up in Derbyshire Dales

Parking charges in the Derbyshire Dales will be hiked for the first time in four years.
Bank Road car park, Matlock  Photo from Google MapsBank Road car park, Matlock  Photo from Google Maps
Bank Road car park, Matlock  Photo from Google Maps

The district council has put forward plans to increase fees by around 13 per cent.

This would see the cost for an hour of parking rise by 20p to £1.50, two hours by 30p to £2.50; three hours by 50p to £3.80; four hours by 60p to £5 and a day by 50p to £6.

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Coaches are charged £5 per three hours and this would increase by £50p.

Overall, the changes are set to cost Derbyshire Dales District Council £28,000 – a large reason why the fees are not increased on a regular basis, due to the number of signs and pay and display machines which need to be altered.

Any income received from car parking at the 34 pay-and-display locations the council owns will be used to repair any damage to the sites, as well as on a wide range of other services.

A report prepared for the council’s community and environment committee states: “Revenue generated from pay-and-display parking is used to support a wide range of range of local services expected of a popular tourist destination, including the provision and upkeep of ornamental parks and gardens, public open spaces and play facilities, as well as contributing to maintaining a high standard of cleanliness and mowing throughout the district’s many market towns and villages.

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“In addition to the loss of potential revenue through freezing parking fees over the past four years, the council has, since January 2018, been required to absorb costs relating to the increasing use of debit and credit cards as a means of payment.

“Most of the council’s car parks now accept such methods of payment, with transactions amounting to more than £230,000 over the last 12 months, with associated merchant banking costs in the region of £13,000.”

The council says that there are 34,000 free parking badges for residents in circulation, which are used 2.5 million times a year.

Residents with these passes can use pay and display car parks for up to 19 hours each day without charge.

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In total, the district council owns 41 car parks, seven of which do not have parking charges.

Parking charges at the district council’s car parks which have a public toilet already have charges 20p higher than sites without these facilities, with coaches charged 50p more.

With the new increases, these sites would remain 20p higher for each charge.