Parking charges in Allerdale will rise from tomorrow.

Allerdale council is changing fees in many of its car parks.

Many of the charges will rise, with some set to drop.

Change was met with heavy opposition in places with fears about the impact of changing tariffs in businesses.

From tomorrow, the daytime charging hours across the council’s car parks will increase, running from 7am to 7pm.

A new £1 overnight charge will be brought in outside those hours.

Pay-and-display machines will be updated with the new prices throughout the day on Wednesday, not before 8am.

New single-town permits will be available that do not require a pay-and-display ticket to be bought.

The council’s executive agreed last month to change the fees.

New parking machines are also due to be brought in. They are set to be installed later and will provide a wider range of payment options.

Other changes include:

  • A cut to 50p for those parking for up to 30 minutes in Keswick to make it cheaper for people to “pop and shop” and help encourage trade
  • Two hours’ free parking in Mill Street car park in Maryport
  • The introduction of single-town permits which range from 27p per day to 82p a day, without the need to buy a £1 ticket as before
  • No change to the price of permits for low-paid workers. This remains at £35 for three months.

An Allerdale spokesman said: “The aim of the changes is to ensure that all the council’s car parks operate at high percentage occupancy but are not so full that residents and visitors are prevented from finding a parking space. There was extensive public consultation before the new tariffs were agreed.”

Anyone with queries about the changes should call the council’s parking team on 01900 702869.