Angry businesses have united to condemn price rises planned for York car parks – saying they will harm the economic vibrancy of the city.
The hikes are part of the council’s budget proposals, due to be ratified at a meeting next week.
Hourly charges at council-run car parks are set to rise to £4.85 for the first two hours, with a ten per cent premium added on Fridays, Saturdays and during events such as the Christmas Market.
That means the cost of parking at Monk Bar car park for the first two hours would increase from £3.10 per hour to £4.85 on Sunday through Thursday, and £5.30 on Friday and Saturday – a rise of 56% and 71% respectively.
Business leaders are particularly worried that the steep price increases will deter regular local customers, who are vital for city centre retailers – especially those who rely on repeat visits from residents of York and nearby towns such as Malton and Harrogate.
Meanwhile, councillors say they have listened to businesses, and have issued a robust defence of the policy – see below.

Andrew Lowson, executive director of York BID, said: “Increasing parking fees overnight by 55-70% is one-dimensional thinking and will harm businesses in the city centre.
“It’s another blow to business amidst rising costs and at a time when business confidence is in serious decline due to the challenging national outlook.”
Phil Pinder, Chair of the High Street Forum, said: “Last year’s record car park increases of over 12% saw a reduction of 7% on individual transactions. The council’s own figures prove that if you increase parking prices radically, fewer people will visit.
“They haven’t conducted any economic impact assessment for these measures, so it’s no surprise that so many business owners in York are alarmed at car parking price rises of over 50%.
“Pricing cars out of the city centre doesn’t get people on buses – it makes those car journeys go elsewhere.”
Andy Masheder, owner of Monk Bar Model Shop, said: “As a long-established city centre business we are concerned by the potential impact of rising car park charges. This along with the recent closure of Sainsbury’s will impact on the frequency of visits and what customers can spend.”
Lack of consultation

Businesses also criticised the consultation over the plans. It took place over Christmas, when traders are at their busiest, finishing on New Year’s Day.
Andrew from the BID said: “It’s disappointing that after years of the York BID trying to engage with City of York Council on a long-term strategy for accessing the city centre, these huge rises in car parking fees drop on the business community with no time for meaningful conversation.
“Many of the business community understand budget challenges for the local authority and the long-term ambition to reduce congestion.
“However, strategies on car parking need to be more nuanced and go hand-in-hand with improvements in public transport provision, as well as offer targeted incentives to consumers as part of the transition.”

Stefan Micevski, chair of the Hospitality Association York (HAY) said; “The HAY group was disappointed to hear of the results of the budget consultations because the short consultation period happened over our members’ busiest time of the year.
“As a result, the survey only had 1,097 respondents, with just 39 of which being businesses.
“As a group, HAY had not been consulted on the topics raised, including the tourism levy which will directly impact us, and we echo the concerns from our colleagues regarding the hike in parking charges”.
Feel the pinch

The Labour-run council has positioned the car park fee rises as chiefly a tax on tourists. But businesses say many retail and hospitality workers, especially those from rural areas without public transport options, will also feel the pinch.
Residents can pay for a Minster Badge to get discounted parking. The council proposes to increase the discount from 10% to 30%.
However, the BID points out that the badge itself is set to rise in price by 50% – from £30 to £45 – offsetting much of the intended benefit.
Representatives from York BID, the High Street Forum, Indie York, and Hospitality Association York met with councillors this week, to discuss their concerns ahead of the City of York Council executive’s budget meeting on Tuesday.
If the council doesn’t alter its car park hikes, they are urging the council to implement measures to soften the blow.
They’ve suggested these initiatives:
- Introducing incentivised parking offers during off-peak times (eg Tuesday mornings) to boost car park occupancy and attract shoppers during quieter periods
- Extending the operating hours of park-and-ride facilities to make them more reliable and consistent.
- Enhancing the quality of facilities like the Coppergate car park, improving the user experience and extending access hours through the night.
York business leaders are today calling for a more collaborative approach to creating a sustainable and accessible city centre.
Andrew Lowson said; “York has so much going for it and we want to talk the economy up. I hope council leaders adapt some of their recommendations to show the business community they have listened.”
What the council say

City of York Council executive member for transport Cllr Kate Ravilious said: “We have listened to businesses by increasing the discount available through use of the Minster Badge from 10% to 30% which, if used by regular customers the BID refers to, will easily offset the increase in the cost of the Minster Badge.
“We have also tapered off the parking charges after the second hour, to make it better value for those who are driving in and parking for longer.
“The High Street Forum’s comments about reduced parking transactions last year are correct. However parking income was up and city centre footfall was up by almost 8%, so it’s clear people travelled in greater numbers to spend money in York city centre.
“There is an assumption that people who drive into central York are unwilling to use alternative forms of transport, and this is not backed up by evidence from elsewhere.
“In fact, research shows that retailers consistently overestimate the number of customers that travel by car (by almost double) and that parking was not found to have a clear impact on retail vitality.
“We’ll continue to talk with businesses and their representatives, as we’ve done throughout the budget consultation, including on new ideas they’re putting forward today.
“However, we have to acknowledge that our roads are already at capacity on many days of the year, encouraging short trips into the city centre will only add to congestion, and that the most effective way of bringing more people into York is to incentivise sustainable means of travel including train, bus, cycling and walking”.