National park agrees fee rises at 14 car parks

Bruce Sinclair, Local Democracy Reporter

A call to raise parking charges at a national park’s car parks, which includes longer stays rising by a third and coach prices doubling, has been given the go-ahead.

At the October 22 meeting of Pembrokeshire Coast National Park, members were recommended to agree a range of changes to parking charges at 14 of the authority’s 40 car parks, effective from March 1 of next year.

Back in 2023, it was agreed that parking prices would be reviewed annually with the pricing structure reviewed every three years, no changes taking place in either 2024 or 2025.

Good news 

The changes proposed include some good news for shorter says but increases for longer periods in the 33 per cent to 100 per cent range.

The proposed charges are: Up to 30 mins, no change from the current nil charge; Up to 1 hour remaining at £1.50; up to two hours rising from £3 to £4; up to four hours from £4.50 to £6; all day £6 to £8; discontinuing weekly £30 rates; and all-day coaches rising from £8 to £16.

A report for members says the number of charging sites has increased from 10 to 14 since 2021, which, along with previous price increases, “has seen a near doubling of the Authority’s parking revenue over the last five years,” but inflationary pressures mean a £1 car parking ticket in 2020 would need to be charged at £1.27 in 2025 to have the same purchasing power in terms of cost recovery.

It lists statutory pressures linked to the parking charges including “a substantial contribution to the Coastal Bus service annually,” and financial support for keeping 10 public toilets open for a two-year period running up until April 2026 at a cost of £111,000 a year.

“In developing a suggested amended model, officers have sought to minimise these risks by developing a charging system which is considered still reasonable and which focuses on increases linked to longer stays, during which the motorist is likely to be accessing some of the wider facilities available such as toilet provision or walking the coast path,” the report says.

Cost increases

The report also highlighted that the Authority’s future financial outlook “is challenging as the impact of cumulative reductions in core funding together with significant cost rises is felt,” with the budget for 25-26 forecasting a deficit of £566,000 for the year, and deficits in excess of £1m are predicted for the next three financial years.

It added: “The Authority is therefore proposing a further increase of 33 per cent in longer stay day car park charges (100 per cent on coaches) in order to meet increased costs and its mid-term financial budget strategy of a balanced budget.”

It is expected, all things being equal, the changes would generate an additional £300,000 of income.

A call to support the officer recommendations, subject to a successful variation of the Authority’s Car Park Order, was moved by Cllr Di Clements, backed by Dr Rosetta Plummer; members hearing there were a total of 40 car parks in the park, with just 14 paid for.

Pembrokeshire County Council is expected to review its own parking charges in January 2026, the report added.