‘Considerable’ costs mean no free parking in Caerphilly Council car parks this Christmas

A request for free parking across Caerphilly County Borough’s car parks this Christmas has been rejected, largely because of costs.

Cllr Amanda McConnell, a council cabinet member, said the local authority stood to lose £75,000 in revenue if a two-hour free parking initiative was introduced this winter.

The council also anticipated a string of problems linked to free parking, including workers taking advantage of a scheme and taking up spaces meant for shoppers.

Cllr Kevin Etheridge, who proposed the initiative again after his similar appeal was turned down last year, said he was disappointed with the council’s decision.

Speaking at a council meeting on Tuesday November 10, the Blackwood councillor said deferring parking charges in December and early January would “help traders in all towns and on high streets”.

But Cllr McConnell said the scheme would cost the council more than £100,000 if parking charges were waived entirely.

She told the meeting the council would also have to expect additional “operational costs” such as software changes to pay-and-display machines, which would add thousands to the bill.

Other costs included updating signs in car parks, promoting the scheme and time spent on dealing with customer enquiries about the changes.

Cllr McConnell said the council had run free parking initiatives in the past and uncovered “considerable hidden costs”.

She said the council would anticipate a higher rate of complaints during and “for many months” after a scheme, from drivers arguing they could not park, had been wrongly charged, or hadn’t realised the free parking offer had finished.

“These enquiries generate a disproportionate burden that diverts resources from core service delivery,” she said. “In addition, free parking initiatives often result in subsequent requests from residents, businesses and elected members seeking to make the arrangements permanent or to extend them further, creating ongoing expectations that are not financially sustainable.”

The cabinet member accepted that free parking is “often perceived positively by some retailers and customers”.

However, she said the council has “balanced these views against the significant loss of income, the operational impacts on the service and the issue of shop workers and traders utilising free parking – which in turn reduces the number of spaces available for shoppers and visitors to the town centres”.

Following the meeting, Cllr Etheridge said the scheme had been rejected “on financial grounds, and this will drive shoppers to Cwmbran and Newport”.

“I feel sorry for our high streets and traders,” he added.