PARKING permits must double in price, free parking spaces disappear and parking enforcement officers step up their activities, if the district council wants to hang on to a lucrative deal.
If East Hampshire District Council (EHDC) doesn’t ensure its on-street parking enforcement service makes money in future, it stands to lose about £146,000 in associated income from Hampshire County Council (HCC).
The service is forecast to lose £38,400 over the coming year.
A report to EHDC’s cabinet recommends that to help it break even after that, parking permits should double in price to £60 a year from April 1, 2020.
But it also says this increase won’t "significantly affect the deficit" - and the only additional income will be from parking fines, currently £70.
It adds: "Income will solely be from Penalty Charge Notices (parking fines) and on-street parking permits."
The council is also being asked by HCC to agree that free parking spaces should become pay-and-display bays.
EHDC cabinet lead for neighbourhood services Ingrid Thomas said: "We will be fighting to keep the free bays as it’s important there are short-stay free spaces available in towns."
The district council is paid to police parking permit schemes and on-street parking for HCC.
Separately there is a Traffic Management Agreement that sees the district council implement Traffic Regulation Orders (TROs) on behalf of HCC, and that earned EHDC around £146,000 last year.
Now HCC says parking enforcement and implementing TROs must be combined in one deal, with the condition that parking enforcement doesn’t show a loss. Any profit will be divided between the councils.
EHDC cabinet members will hear today (March 21) there are numerous risks, "primarily reputational," in refusing the deal to protect residents from the increases.
HCC is set to take the services back in house unless its terms are agreed.