Business owners say council plans to introduce new car parking charges at two popular Welsh seaside locations will drive customers away and cause fellow traders to struggle. Vale of Glamorgan Council’s cabinet members agreed in principle at a meeting on Thursday, January 9 to the introduction of charges for certain car parks in and around Barry and Penarth and to new charges for on-street car parking at Barry Island and Penarth seafront.
At the moment, the council expects to face a budget shortfall of £14.8m for 2025-26. The council said the car parking changes, along with plans to close Court Road Car Park in Barry town centre, could generate income and savings worth about £500,000. However, businesses, residents and local councillors have come out in opposition to the proposals.
Louis Ross, of the Barrybados shop at Barry Island, said: “A lot of our trade, especially in the winter months and after school is from locals. If the locals start having to pay [for] every trip to come down to Barry Island, then they are not going to come as frequently and they are not going to spend as much money.”
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Car parking charges will be introduced at the following locations in the Vale:
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The Knap Car Park (Barry) – 164 spaces
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Bron Y Mor (Barry) – 67 spaces
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Penarth Cliff Walk – 177 spaces
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Portabello (Ogmore-by-Sea) – 25 spaces
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West Farm (Southerndown) – 22 spaces
On-street car parking charges at Barry Island will affect Paget Road, Breaksea Drive, Friars Road and Station Approach Road. Parking charges at Penarth seafront will affect The Esplanade, Cliff Hill, Cliff Parade and sections of Beach Road and Bridgeman Road. For more Wesh stories, sign up to our daily newsletter here.
Vale of Glamorgan Council said the income generated from car parking charges would help it maintain facilities and a beach cleansing routine at popular seaside spots. It also said parking season tickets will continue to be available for residents, traders and other frequent visitors.
However, these will not be available for on-street areas affected by new charges and Louis said on his petition page that he thinks residents already pay “more than enough council tax with services reduced”. Speaking with the Local Democracy Reporting Service, Louis said: “The council does do an excellent job in keeping this resort clean.
Giovanni’s at Barry Island -Credit:Richard Swingler
“I understand that people who visit this area from out of the Vale expect to pay a charge to park. It is the residents of Barry and the Vale who just want to come down here, three or four times a week to walk a dog, walk with the kids after school – they are being punished.
“There has got to be a common ground where there is some element of free parking for locals and traders to keep these businesses going all year around.” He went on to say residents in Barry are at “boiling point at the moment”, adding: “We are just sick. Every year there are council tax rises, there’s charges for every little thing. It’s impossible to do something now without a charge.”
A campaign was launched in 2019 after similar council plans to introduce parking charges at Barry Island were announced. The local authority eventually decided not to go ahead with them. Plaid Cymru group leader at Vale of Glamorgan Council, Cllr Ian Johnson, criticised the council’s cabinet for agreeing to the car parking proposals in principle so soon after the start of the new year.
Vale of Glamorgan Council said it wants to bring in the charges so it can pay for the maintenance of popular seaside spots -Credit:Richard Swingler
He accused the council of “trying to railroad” the proposals through in “just a few days”, adding they would have a “massive impact”. The proposals didn’t go to a scrutiny committee before being agreed to in principle by cabinet members. John Zeraschi, who owns Giovanni’s at Barry Island, said the parking charge proposals will “put businesses backwards” and “drive people away”.
“I haven’t been down here a couple of years, I have been down here a lifetime,” said John. “I know we get the visitors in the summer… but you can’t rely on that. You have got to rely on your regular customers, whether they come from Caerphilly or Mountain Ash or Newport or wherever and when they come down here, the one benefit they have got is they can park down here for at least two hours free and have a coffee and go for a walk.”
A Vale of Glamorgan Council document on the car parking charges states a mixture of card only and card and cash pay and display machines would be used for parking payments. The proposed charges are as follows:
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Up to two hours – £2.50
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Up to three hours – £4
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Up to four hours – £6
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Up to five hours – £8
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All day – £10
John said: “It is going to drive business away, it is as simple as that. There is no argument about it. If my takings go down, I will have to cut down on staff. I think it is a big mistake.” Speaking at the Vale of Glamorgan Council cabinet meeting on January 9, the council’s cabinet member for neighbourhood and building services, Cllr Mark Wilson, said the local authority wants to maintain the “high quality and high standards” of resorts like Barry Island.
He added: “Of course that comes with a cost and we want to support that cost.” Speaking at the same meeting, Labour councillor Cllr Ruba Sivagnanam said the council is trying to protect residents and coastal areas through the new charges. Cllr Sivagnanam, who is also a Vale Council cabinet member, said seaside hotspots in the Vale faced “wear and tear” throughout the year which had to be dealt with and paid for.
Another proposal that cabinet members agreed to in principle was to make residential parking permits digital. The local authority plans to maintain its policy of not charging for residential parking permits and hopes making them digital will reduce the current administrative costs of providing paper permits.