Council to introduce on-street parking charges
The Vale of Glamorgan Council is set to introduce on-street car parking charges in areas of Barry Island and Penarth Seafront.
This is designed to:
- Combat congestion
- Encourage more environmentally friendly forms of travel
- Increase turnover of vehicles and availability of car parking spaces
- Allow for reinvestment into resorts and the highway system
Proposals were agreed at a meeting of the Council’s Cabinet after it considered additional information on parking patterns gathered by the Authority’s Enforcement Team.
That research revealed more people parked on-street than used nearby car parks. It also highlighted examples of people regularly exceeding the on-street parking time limit, and cases of individuals abusing the existing system by moving from one area of on-street parking to another in the same vicinity. This served to reduce the availability of on-street car parking spaces for visitors.
Traffic Regulation Order (TRO) proposals will be published shortly, which are subject to a 21-day statutory public consultation period. Charges to park on street at Barry Island and Penarth Seafront along the Esplanade will begin later in the day than the 8am start time originally proposed.
Up until 10am, parking will be free of charge, meaning someone who parks early in the morning can stay up to midday for only £2.50.
This is aimed at supporting local people and who regularly visit the seafront at Penarth or Barry Island, which in turn boosts businesses in these locations.
From 10am until 6pm, there will be a charge of £2.50 to park for up to two hours, £4 for up to three hours and £6 for a maximum four-hour stay.
Cllr Lis Burnett, Leader of the Vale of Glamorgan Council said: "These charges are designed to reduce congestion and improve traffic flow by encouraging people to use car parks, public transport and active forms of travel.
“It has also been proven that people are moving directly from one on-street parking space to another, deliberately abusing the current system by overstaying. We need to stop that. We also want to increase the turnover and availability of spaces.
“The income raised will be reinvested into the resorts and highway maintenance at these popular locations.
“We have made on-street parking at resorts free before 10am to try and accommodate those living locally and restricted on-street parking in these areas to a maximum of four hours to ensure different people can access spaces throughout the day.”
In a separate report, Cabinet agreed to the introduction of charges at Cold Knap, Bron-y-Mor, Cliff Walk, Portabello and West Farm car parks, following completion of the TRO public consultation process.
Charges will now be implemented, alongside the creation of two new disabled parking bays and some resurfacing work at Bron-y-Mor. Resurfacing work has already been completed at Penarth Cliff Top Car Park.
Similarly to on-street charges, any surplus income from off-street car parking will be used to support highway maintenance, transport projects and the general maintenance of the relevant resort area.