York could soon see a big change come in to car parking across the city.
City of York Council wants to introduce cashless parking across its parking estate, including car parks and on-street parking.
If approved, an online consultation process will begin.
A council report says that the move would follow current payment trends, save money and stop thefts from parking meters.
It says that during and since the pandemic, “the use of cash as reduced to about 14% of the total amount of payment methods and forecast to reduce even further based on current trends”.
And the roll-out of pay-by-phone parking meters has seen a big reduction in cash payments. In 2022/23, street machines took £113k in cash but £223k in pay by phone payments.
Ending cash payments would reduce the council’s maintenance costs too. Cash machines wear out more quickly and suffer from coin jams.
“Card and contactless only machines are also cheaper to purchase and maintain,” the report says.
And it would stop parking meter crime. “Another reason to consider cashless payments is that over the last few years we have seen a number of attacks, both planned and taken by chance, on parking ticket machines to steal the cash in them.
“Recently damage and theft of a pay and display machine at Scarborough Hospital was recorded. Therefore, a cashless policy would eliminate any risks of thefts or damage associated with the stealing of cash.”
Some parking meters might go completely, the report adds. They would remove any that take less than £10,000 a year.
The consultation process will mainly be online.
But the report adds: “Engagement will be undertaken with the Council’s Access Officer and the equalities groups to ensure if cash payments were to be stopped the full impacts can be considered e.g., people who are less inclined to use card, contactless or pay by phone payment methods.”
The report will go to the decision session of the executive member for economy and transport Cllr Pete Kilbane on Tuesday (11 July). You can read the report here.
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