Council's parking fee confusion

"Evening parking now only £2," they stated. "Further discounts are available."

The only problem was that this was the Peel Street car park, the only council-run city centre car park where evening charges do not apply. Under the terms of a lease from the owners of the land, the Roman Catholic Church, parking must be completely free after 6pm.

The Peel Street park, situated between Piccadilly and Walmgate, became an oasis of hope for cash-strapped motorists in the summer, when City of York Council was controversially charging up to £5 to park for the evening at other central car parks.

And although the authority has now reduced its evening charges to a flat-rate fee of £2, with York residents paying only £1, Peel Street is still the cheaper option.

Motorists contacted the Evening Press to query the signs after the paper reported last week that planners were considering granting permission for the car park to stay open for another three years.

They said the signs appeared to indicate that evening charges had been quietly introduced by the authority, and it was only on reading the small print on the notice board next to the ticket machine that the truth emerged.

One motorist parking up in Peel Street, Clare Welford, said she took it from the signs that she would have to pay on an evening. "I couldn't believe people had to pay to park here at night," she said.

A council spokeswoman said the signs, which have gone up at car parks across the city to inform motorists about the cheaper rates, had been erected at Peel Street in error. She said they would be removed immediately.

Meanwhile, she also acted to clear up confusion about when daytime charges begin at Peel Street. The ticket machine states: "Charges apply between 8am and 6pm," while the notice board states they start at 8.30am. The spokeswoman said the latter sign was correct.

Updated: 10:28 Tuesday, November 30, 2004