Everyone who drives in East Ayrshire should take a few minutes to respond to East Ayrshire Council’s parking consultation. That’s the view of local MSP Brian Whittle, who’s calling for a balanced approach between raising cash and penalising drivers.
With council budgets being squeezed by Holyrood, East Ayrshire Council, soon to be followed by South Ayrshire, are reviewing their parking charges and considering making more spaces pay & display.
Among proposals on the table are bringing back Saturday off street parking charges in Kilmarnock, extending enforcement hours from 9am-5pm to 8am-6pm, introducing a free residents parking system charging £1.50 per day for non-residents to park, bringing in on and off street parking charges in Stewarton & Cumnock and on street parking charges in Galston & Mauchline.
While the funds raised directly from the additional charges have to be spent on roads, as part of the proposals the Council also wants to establish a community regeneration fund to invest in town centres, using funds equivalent to a percentage of what’s raised.
South Scotland MSP Brian Whittle is encouraging people who live and work in East Ayrshire to respond to the consultation and make sure the Council make the right decisions.
Brian Whittle MSP said:
“No-one enjoys paying for parking, but with the Scottish Government cutting East Ayrshire’s budget by 1.8% in real terms, difficult decisions have to be made. There are a mix of proposals on the table and I’m sure people’s views of them will be just as mixed.
We should encourage people to use public transport when possible, but there are always going to be people who have to use the car. I hope the Council will adopt an approach that properly balances the needs of residents, shoppers and workers, who all need to be able to park easily and affordably.
There are no perfect solutions here, but the more people make their views heard, the better informed the final decision should be.”
East Ayrshire Councillor Tom Cook added,
“I wish to make clear that at this time these proposals are purely out for consultation and urge residents and businesses to engage in the process. Any decision on whether to implement any of the proposals will only be taken by Councillors at the end of the process after a full evaluation of responses has been concluded and the views of all parties considered.”
