Car park charges increased

THE cost of using Henley’s car parks has gone up.

South Oxfordshire District Council has announced a price change at all its car parks, including those in Greys Road, King’s Road and Southfields, off Goodall Close.

It says the fees are being simplified and rounded up or down to the nearest whole pound while all car parks will continue to have a period of free parking.

This means some fees have been reduced by up to 16 per cent while others have gone up. The cost of a parking permit has been held.

In the Greys Road and King’s Road car parks, parking remains free for the first hour but has risen from £1.80 to £2 for up to two hours of parking and from £2.40 to £3 for up to three hours of parking.

The Southfields car park’s prices have gone up from £3.20 to £4 for up to five hours of parking and from £4.40 to £5 for more than five hours of parking.

The council says the additional parking income from the rises means it can match the cost of managing and running its car parks and avoid having to divert funding from other council services to subsidise it.

Sue Cooper, cabinet member for the environment, said: “It is always a difficult balance between supporting our local traders, ensuring we have enough revenue to invest in maintaining our car parks and encouraging people to swap their cars for walking, bikes or buses when possible, which would help improve air quality.

“I believe this is reflected in our decision to keep the hour’s free parking in our car parks while we have tried to keep increases modest wherever possible.”

The council says there is a growing body of evidence that shows the number of car parking spaces available is a bigger factor in encouraging people to a town centre than the price of parking.

Research shows drivers value the certainty of being able to park when and where they want to and convenience is a quality for which most people are willing to pay.

It also shows that the towns and cities with the highest footfall generally have higher than average parking charges.