Car parking charges confirmed for Preston city centre site

Lancashire County Council’s cabinet approved the plan, which first emerged last week, to introduce charges at the Arthur Street car park at the back of County Hall.

The facility is reserved for council staff and visitors during the week, but is open to the public at the weekend.

Under the new system, visitors using the 136-space car park will have to pay £1.60 for up to two hours, £3.20 for no more than four hours or £4.00 to permit them to stay all day.

Charges will also be introduced at the neighbouring car parks for the Preston registry office and Lancashire Archives.

An exact date for the changeover has not yet been announced.

“We are shooting ourselves in the foot, because we charge for car parking [elsewhere] in the city, but this one is free - so it makes common sense to me to charge people to park there,” County Cllr Keith Iddon, the authority’s member for highways, told a cabinet meeting.