East Sussex County Council will soon be seeking views on plans to increase parking charges in Battle, Bexhill and Rye.
On Monday (October 14), Cllr Claire Dowling, lead member for transport and environment, agreed for the council to go out to consultation on changes to on-street parking charges in Rother.
The potential changes include a major overhaul of residents’ parking permits, which allow for day time parking (mostly between 8am and 6pm) in the seven permit zones in Rother. Four of these zones are in Bexhill, two in Rye and one in Battle.
Currently, the council charges a flat rate for residents’ parking permits in Rother. It costs £10 for a three-month permit, £17 for a six-month permit and £27 for a 12-month permit.
Through the consultation, council is seeking views on the introduction of a new scheme, which would take into account the C02 emissions of the vehicles tied to the permit.
If introduced, this new scheme could significantly increase costs for many permit holders. Only those with very low emission vehicles (emitting 100g/km or less of CO2) would pay less than a current permit holder, with a 12-month permit costing just £17. Vehicles with emissions above this would pay at least £60 for a 12-month permit.
The top end costs of a 12-month permit would rise to £103, although this would only apply to vehicles which emit more than 185g/km of C02.
Costs for business permits, visitor permits and second vehicles would also increase under the proposed scheme.
Emissions-based costs would not apply to disabled parking permits, however, which would be set at a flat rate of £7 for 12-months.
The consultation proposals also include increases in pay and display parking tariffs. The increases vary from area to area, although some price jumps are significant.
For example, the cost of a two hour ticket at Bexhill Marina would increase from £2.95 to £4.30, while an all-day ticket for the Seafront and Bexhill North parking areas would increase from £2.30 to £3.30.
Pay and display parking near Bexhill Station would also be set to increase. Currently, an all-day ticket (10 hours) costs £4.35, but would be set to rise to £6.35 under the proposed scheme.
In Battle, the cost of one-hour of on-street parking would increase from 40p to 70p. In Rye, the cost of a two-hour ticket would increase from 90p to £1.35.
The council has not yet set a start date nor agreed a length for the consultation, although it is expected to begin within the five weeks.
