Cork County Mayor calls out ‘unfair’ differences in parking costs between Cork towns
CorkmanDrive into the town of Midleton and you can park for free for up to three hours. But if you go 20 km down the road to another east Cork town, Youghal, you have to pay for your parking – even if you’re only stopping for ten minutes – or else risk getting a ticket. Yet both towns are in the same municipal district. It’s a situation that the Mayor of County Cork has said “anyone with half a brain” would realise is unfair.
The Mayor, Youghal Councillor Mary Linehan Foley, was speaking at this week’s meeting of the East Cork Municipal District (MD) as she put forward a motion calling on the MD to allow free parking in Youghal for the first 20 minutes, something that currently costs 20 cents, until an upcoming review of parking byelaws takes place.
“In the interest of fairness we've one municipal district here with two towns. One is free parking, one is paid parking. Anyone with half a brain would realise that's not fair. I’m worried about in the interest of fairness that the two towns have the same fair chance to get footfall working,” Cllr Linehan Foley said.
She said the purpose of her motion was to allow “a basic 15 to 20 minutes of someone being able to go into the post office in Youghal and collect their pension and come out without getting a fine. Somebody to pop in and get a paper. I'm not talking about all day parking.”
“I've been inundated with people contacting me, the Chamber of Commerce are asking for an update from me. I don't have an update because we didn't have our discussion yet on the byelaws. So I'm pleading today and asking that we give 15 to 20 minutes grace until these new byelaws are enacted,” the Independent councillor said.
Cllr Patrick Mulcahy seconded the motion. He said he thought there was a “grace period” for parking in Youghal but “there has been tickets given out at three minutes past nine and seven minutes past nine so that grace period clearly doesn't happen.”
Cllr Ann Marie Ahern also supported the motion. “I think it's the only way to increase footfall for the town of Youghal coming up to December and coming up to Christmas. And that 15 or 20 minutes can be imperative to somebody who is of reduced mobility, getting out of their car, walking to the post office, given queues at this time of the year with wet weather and everything,” she said.
Responding to the motion, Noreen Brennan, Acting Senior Executive with Cork County Council, conceded that “Youghal is unusual in that it is 20 cent that's required to be put in to get those 15-20 minutes.” She said she would take onboard the views expressed at the meeting and would come back to the MD with a response.
A county-wide review of parking byelaws is set to take place soon. Cllr Linehan Foley told the Irish Independent she hopes this will happen “in the next couple of weeks.”