Residents urged to join debate on parking charges

Controversial plans to introduce car parking charges on Northallerton’s High Street – which protesters say will be another hammer blow to the town’s economy – are to be debated in public.

Traders fear the move could stop shoppers coming into the town centre and spending their cash at a time when the town is already reeling from the news of hundreds of job losses.

Northallerton prison is to close by March, alongside three others across the country, as part of Government plans. The news came after workers at the Rural Payments Agency (RPA) in Northallerton were told the department was being relocated as part of Government cost-cutting moves.

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North Yorkshire County Council is proposing that parking in High Street, Zetland Street, Hatfield Road, Quaker Lane and South Parade would be free for 30 minutes. Motorists choosing to leave their vehicles parked in High Street would be able to do so for a maximum period of two hours, at the rate of 80p for one hour or £1.60 for two hours.

The council believes local business will benefit by motorists being encouraged to use off-street car parks for longer stays. As
well as freeing up spaces in High Street for short-term shoppers, the move would also reduce congestion.

However, opponents have questioned the move.

Marcus Grover, of Grovers Toymaster, in Northallerton, said: “We are losing two of our major employers in Northallerton, with the prison closing and
the rural payments, and we desperately need Northallerton to have a boost and this will seriously affect the vitality of Northallerton.”

Public consultation on the scheme will run until January 3. Comments can be made online at
www.northyorks.gov.uk/northallertonparking, or in writing to North Yorkshire County Council, Highways and Transportation, Area 2 Thirsk Office, Thirsk Industrial Park, York Road, Thirsk, YO7 3BX.