Chichester District Council has approved an increase in charges in its car parks.
The changes, which include the introduction of charges in rural car parks on Sundays, were approved during a meeting of the full council on Tuesday (January 23).
From April 1, drivers will be faced with a 6.7% increase on pay and display tariffs and a 6.5% season ticket rise.
The increases will see the cost of parking for up to three hours in central Chichester, at Little London or Baffins Lane, rise from £6.60 to £7.
In short-stay car parks the cost will rise from £5.20 to £5.50.
Parking for up to 10 hours at long-stay car parks, such as Cattle Market and Northgate, will rise from £7.90 to £8.40.
And Sunday tariffs in city centre long-stay car parks will be charged at the Monday to Saturday rate.
Drivers will also be charged for parking in short-stay car parks up to 8pm, rather than the current 6pm – although there would be no change at Cattle Market, Basin Road and Avenue de Chartres.
There was quite a debate over the changes, with Steve Boulcott (Green & Local Alliance Group, Selsey South) proposing the Sunday charges in previously free rural areas be dropped from the recommendations.
Mr Boulcott and others shared their concerns about the impact the charges would have on the small businesses in rural high streets, predicting people would choose to go elsewhere than have to pay.
It was a view shared by Arundel and South Downs MP Andrew Griffith who called the proposed changes ‘the great parking betrayal’.
In an article sent to the Chichester Observer, Mr Griffith said: “The stealth taxation of motorists in this way will kill rather than grow our small High Streets and should be immediately withdrawn.”
But the amendment was lost, as was another asking for charging in short-stay car parks to only be extended to 7pm rather than 8pm.
Harsha Desai, cabinet member for growth & place, told the meeting that a consultation into the changes, which was held at the end of last year, attracted only five responses.
She added that the money raised from the increased and additional charges would ‘really help us to support services in the council’.
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