Can we believe parking promise?

Pickering Town Community Interest Company (PTCIC) recently wrote a detailed and comprehensively evidenced letter to North Yorkshire Council (NYC) asking them to re-appraise parking charges in the town and to hopefully provide some element of free parking.

This, on the basis that we are acutely aware of the economic viability of so many town centre shops and businesses hanging by a thread and needing increased footfall merely to survive and cover huge inflation in all their outgoings.

That said, we are also aware of the dire state that most councils’ funding has been reduced to.

It’s in nobody’s interest to have yet another empty and dilapidated town centre, including NYC, who collect the business rates and parking charges.

Their Head of Parking Services’ response was that ‘Over the coming year, the council intends to conduct a thorough parking review’ and ‘as a starting principal it is unlikely that free parking will be available’.

NYC officers act in accordance with the political leadership of their 100 per cent Conservative executive, which includes Tory mayoral candidate Keane Duncan. Strange therefore that the very same Cllr Duncan is now promising quite the opposite of ‘up to two hours of free parking in every town and city’.

Although this promise would be heartily welcomed by many businesses, it will be important to know precisely how much it would cost, how long it would last and which vital services or infrastructure would lose funding to cover the cost. Many of us are only too aware of ‘politicians’ promises’ and how they can subsequently evaporate or be mysteriously redefined after election.

Mike Potter, Chair PTCIC, Pickering