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No Christmas break from parking fees
Reporter: Dawn Marsden
Date online: 23 December 2009
A trader has hit out at Oldham Council for refusing to waive parking charges over the festive season.
Manchester City Council has lifted all charges on December 26, 27 and 28 allowing shoppers to benefit from free parking as the sales start.
There is expected to be widespread confusion across the country as on-street parking restrictions and charges are often lifted on December 26.
But as Boxing Day falls on a Saturday this year, it is not an official bank holiday — leaving many councils planning to treat it as a normal day, with traffic wardens patrolling to maintain the usual parking rules.
Oldham Council has confirmed that the only day over Christmas when there will be no on-street or car parking charges will be Christmas Day.
The bank holiday falls on Monday this year but there will be charges in effect.
Manchester city centre has enjoyed a hugely successful festive shopping period with sales up 5 per cent on last year.
Paul Hughes, manager at Zutti Co in Yorkshire Street, said: “I think the decision by Oldham Council to enforce parking charges is counter-productive and miserly given the time of year and the weather conditions. People have got enough to worry about.”
Councillor Mark Alcock, cabinet member for environment and Infrastructure, said: “This is a decision that we take jointly in consultation with the Town Centre Partnership – and other local authorities are also charging for parking on these dates.
“We would advise all motorists to check the arrangements at any private car parks they may use. The Spindles and Town Square shopping centres, for example, will be charging.
“Oldham Council’s parking service is provided by NSL which employs enforcement officers to ensure vehicles are parked safely and are not hazardous to other road-users.
“That maximises the amount of parking available by ensuring that motorists park correctly and legally which is vital on what are likely to be busy shopping days. This is to done to ensure the safety of road-users and pedestrians and to keep traffic flowing freely — not to increase income for Oldham Council.”
Comments
If,in fact this is " not to increase income for Oldham" the The Council would actually save money by proving free parking because they wouldn't have to pay premium rates to the "enforcement officers".
The sooner we get rid of this lot of idiots, the better Oldham will be !!!!!
Nice to see the council are getting into the spirit of things!
Lets hope the ground is still covered in snow - then there are no yellow lines.
Mr. Alcock, by charging over this period there will be plenty of spaces available as the majority of people will be shopping in Manchester.
No matter what type of spin you put on it, most of the people of Oldham will see it is a cash grabbing exercise.
Yet again penny pinching oldham council spoiling xams trade in oldham what there is of it. Its a shame the council and its partners don't fine taxis for parking in the bus lanes.. Manchester do, well they follow the law unlike oldham
Brilliant news, everyone will be able to go out for a CHRISTMAS KEBAB on christmas day without the worry of getting a parking ticket while they wait, what an ABSOLUTE JOKE Oldham Council are, happy shopping in MANCHESTER everybody
Would the people of Oldham prefer free parking and council taxes to go up? The council is needing to claw back money, better they charge for parking at Christmas than cut more jobs/services.
ArthurD if they did not waste the money on stupid TV adverts they would not need to "Claw Back Money"
I don't care whether the parking is free or £10 a minute.
Oldham town centre has nothing to offer. No independant shops to speak of, no leisure facilities, no tourist attractions. Just plenty of takeaways who will deliver anyway.
Who cares what others are doing Alcock you buffoon!! Your tone is condescending and patronising in the extreme. Anyone who wants to know what NSL are all about only needed to watch the recent tv programme on traffic wardens in Westminster.
ProDriver, how dare you call the member for almost everything in the known universe, a buffoon! That's my prerogative. Anyhow I've now decided that he's not that good. He's beginning to give buffoons a bad name. Just think, he wants to be an MP. Mind you, he's got all the qualifications to join the other clowns in the House of Conmen circus.
my wife and i left our beloved town in april 2007 to live in greece,after reading all this this from the towns money bandits, never have i been so sure we made the right decision, my country has been given away, what is a true englishman now
Have Your Say
"This is to done to ensure the safety of road-users and pedestrians and to keep traffic flowing freely — not to increase income for Oldham Council.”
Rubbish what hazard does a car parked on the town hall, market car park, or civic centre car park cause.
By MAD4IT @ 23/12/2009 12:27:16