Two Devizes councillors who represent the town on Wiltshire Council, have responded to complaints on social media about the county authority’s new increase in car parking charges.

Stung by criticism of the parking increases agreed in last week’s county council budget, Cllrs Iain Wallis and Kelvin Nash have issued a joint statement.

It addresses those residents who have been reportedly “outraged” by the cost of parking in the town centre rising by 10p per hour – an increase frozen until 2026 - and that Blue Badge holders will now have to pay for parking.

Car parking in the Market Place currently costs 70p an hour, or £1.30 for the maximum two hours that one is allowed to park. It is currently free all day for Blue Badge disabled drivers.

Car parking in nearby and also town-central Sheep Street is also 70p per hour, but drivers can park there for 24 hours for an all-day charge of £6.70. Blue Badgers can currently park there all day for nothing.

As well as a standard 10p per hour increase, the new Sunday parking fee across the county will be a flat fee, ranging from 50p to £1.19.

Cllrs Wallis and Nash noted that although car parking revenue contributes only 0.33 per cent of the county’s budget, it is this that appears to have most inflamed the reaction to financing services in Wiltshire.

In a statement to residents through this newspaper, the two councillors commented: “Putting parking into context, Wiltshire Council has committed to spend over £417m on services throughout the coming financial year, including £235m on support and care for adults and children, £92m on vital day-to-day services such as waste management, road maintenance, leisure and libraries, as well as the council’s carbon management and climate change work. 

“The council will also invest £1m to support high streets across the county become vibrant places for shopping and leisure.

"However, it’s parking that’s hit the headlines and dominated the debate at Wiltshire Council’s marathon budget meeting on Tuesday, despite representing a very small proportion of the finances, in the region of one third of one percent.

“The cost of parking is an emotive subject, not least because drivers see the cash disappearing from their hands, however it is a very small contributor to the overall cost of car ownership.

“An average increase of 10p per hour is an inflationary increase that will be held for the next four years. Parking charges are reviewed on a four-year cycle, not least to minimise the cost of implementation such as signage, systems reprogramming and the associated legal and administrative requirements to invoke the changes.

“Do you remember the outcry and public unrest over the introduction of charging in the Market Place, yet it remains one of the most popular car parks in Devizes?

“Wiltshire’s charges are competitive compared with neighbouring counties and it should also be noted that fees are not planned to increase for four years so that the costs of implementing the increase (car park signage and reprogramming machines) can be offset over this period."

They also responded specifically to Blue Badge parking concerns.

“Charging for Blue Badge holders is another very emotive subject, however they can still park free of charge for three hours on double yellow lines so long as they do not cause an obstruction, and invariably for those with mobility issues, this often works much better for them, enabling parking much closer to their chosen destination," they said.

“Wiltshire is very much in the minority regarding Sunday parking charges and a small fixed fee for the day doesn’t seem unreasonable, however if free Sunday parking is a local priority, then towns and parishes may buy this back if they wish. Some Wiltshire towns have chosen to provide subsidised or even free parking in their car parks.

“Linked to car parking is the removal of the town’s event parking allowance. Whilst a potential challenge for event organisers, the impact in Devizes is relatively minor given that Devizes Town Council manages a number of locations where community events can and do take place," they added.

“Importantly, during the asset transfer negotiations, a condition was applied to the Market Place allowing Devizes Town Council to use the location at will as a community open space without incurring any charges.

“On the whole, all of the unitary members for Devizes believe this to be a good budget which largely avoided cuts and will build financial security for Wiltshire when many local authorities are at extreme financial risk.”