LIVERPOOL COUNCIL APPROVES CITY CENTRE PARKING CHARGE RISE

Liverpool City Council has approved higher charges for its city centre parking spaces from 1 November. Councillors signed off the increase on Tuesday, according to the council. It will apply to council-owned car parks and on-street spaces across the city centre. In the inner zone, the council says a 30-minute stay will cost £2.40, up from £2.30. A one-hour stay will cost £4.60, while two hours will rise from £6.50 to £6.80.

The council says a stay of up to four hours in the inner zone will cost £11, up from £10.60. In the outer zone, 30 minutes will cost £1.90, while one hour will rise to £3.60 and two hours to £5.60. At Victoria Street and Paddington Village, nine hours will cost £17.40 and a 24-hour stay £21.60. The council has set a 24-hour charge of £29.10 at Kings Dock. A three-hour stay at Mount Pleasant will cost £5.10.

The rise follows a council review of charges for services including parking, leisure and bereavement services between April and autumn. The council links the new tariffs to a 3.1% rise in the consumer price index and puts the average parking increase at 4%. Parking charges last rose in April, when they increased by an average of 11%. Councillor Ruth Bennett said the council continually monitored charges to keep them competitive and sustainable. A council cabinet report says parking income helps fund services, while the council expects revenue this financial year to fall short of its forecast.