On-street parking revenue helping to fund transport

A SERIES of transport projects are to benefit from hundreds of thousands of pounds from cash raised from on-street parking charges in the Harrogate district.

More than 150,000 obtained from charges in the area last year is to be added to a 1.2m pot generated from car parking in the district to be invested in improvements.

Among the proposals are 250,000 to be invested in rural road safety projects, 371,000 on tackling congestion in Harrogate, and 400,000 towards the cost of providing public transport concessions to disabled and elderly people.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

Don Mackenzie, Cabinet member for planning and transport at Harrogate Borough Council, said: "While nobody likes to have to pay parking charges, if we didn't have it in place there would be a free for all on our streets.

"The money has been generated by parking fines and parking meters and will be invested back into the community." Among the projects set to benefit is the Little Red Bus Network, which provides transport to more than 250,000 hard-to-reach people across North Yorkshire.

Chief executive Lyn Costelloe said: "This is absolutely fantastic and a major boost for us.

"We provide transport to people who otherwise would find it difficult to access buses and trains and it is a very good cause.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

"We do not know what grants we will be getting in advance so with this money it will make a huge different to our budget.

"At least if you are getting stung by the Harrogate traffic wardens you know the money is going to a good home."

Earlier this month a Freedom of Information request revealed 18,677 tickets were handed out in Harrogate last year – that is just over 1,550 every month, and 359 every week.

This figure is up three per cent on the year before, and compares to 16,717 tickets in York (down 21 per cent), and 127,137 in Leeds (down two per cent.)

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

Traffic wardens also issued more than 734 parking tickets in a single street, Valley Drive, in the financial year 2008/09.

The second most-popular warden hotspot was nearby Swan Road, where 489 tickets were issued.

The proposals to add the car parking charges will now be put before North Yorkshire County Council.