PROPOSED off street parking in Ayr would rake in over £200,000 for South Ayrshire Council it can be revealed.
The charged parking at the Esplanade at Blackburn Drive and Tam’s Brig would earn a total of £224,020 combined.
A freedom of information request by a concerned local resident discovered the projected average income per space in each of the proposed off-street parking across South Ayrshire Council.
Malcolm Warr sought out answers from the council to an “irritating issue” that he thinks will hammer local businesses.
Malcolm who lives in Prestwick asked the council to provide data on how much it will cost the council to run the scheme and the projected income to be derived from parking charges.
Data revealed by the council shows a breakdown of each proposed parking scheme across Prestwick, Ayr and Troon.
Malcolm told the Ayr Advertiser : “People approached me about this small but irritating issue. It’s simple really from the evidence they have presented so far. SAC don’t seem to have an overall policy that covers how citizens can move around. They don’t have requirements to regulate and police that, and they don’t seem to have a strategy in place which can serve those points.”
“What the council are saying is we potentially have a parking problem, so let’s fix it by charging people more. It seems to me here they have clearly not looked properly at the wider implication; will they continue to shop in Prestwick, or will they move elsewhere. That’s what they need to look at.”
The figures were based on seasonal months between March and October. And the data reveals a break down in the projected income if the car park isn’t at its full capacity.
If the car park at Esplanade Blackburn Drive is only a quarter full then the total briefs would be £50,313. In Tam’s Brig the council would only make profits of £4,000 if the car park was only a quarter full.
A spokesperson for South Ayrshire council told the Ayr Advertiser: “Councillors made the decision in March 2018 to introduce charges in car parks which were previously free of charge.
“This followed public consultation where the majority said they would accept additional charges.”
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