PAYING for parking is never popular, but often understood to be a daily necessity for town centre workers and one for during weekends and holidays for day trippers and tourists.

But how much is too much? In respect to market towns and visitor destinations, There must be a balance between stopping motorists hogging the same spot all day, and putting people off with too high a charge.

Parking charges and restrictions have long been a point of contention in Richmond, especially after the opening of the large free car park at nearby Catterick Garrison’s new town centre.

Many businesses in the town centre felt visitors would be put off and would rather go where they would not be fined by zealous parking inspectors.

But now there is greater concern, as Richmondshire District Council has mooted plans to increase parking charges across the district by up to 50 per cent – going from £1 an hour to £1.50 an hour in towns such as Richmond, Hawes or Leyburn.

The proposals come as part of a package of further austerity savings and will not be confirmed until the full council budget meeting in February – but it has already been approved by the council’s corporate board, suggesting it may well be accepted by the council.

The corporate board, in setting its medium-term financial strategy, looked at fees and charges as part of its budget setting process, and wherever possible charges have been increased by four per cent.

The council expects to meet a target of £48,200 additional income, and the efficiency plant “assumes above-average increases in car parking income of £20,000 each year for 2017 to 2018 and 2018 to 2019”.

One-, two- and four-hour tariffs, as well as all-day tariffs, would go up by 50p, and parking permits would increase by £10 a year.

The overall the impact of the proposals is an increase in income of £71,000 – but how it will go down with businesses, visitors and residents in the district remains to be seen.