More than £1million in parking profits for Bedford Borough Council

Bedford Borough Council made more than £1 million in profit from parking last year.

That is according to analysis by the RAC Foundation which shows councils across the country are making hundreds of millions from parking activities.

The motoring research group said parking “is quite a money spinner” for some councils, but the Local Government Association says any surplus is spent on essential transport projects.

Bedford Borough Council made £1.45million in profit from parking services in 2019-20, according to the research.

That was down 26 per cent from £1.95million the previous year, but a 22 per cent increase from £1.19million in 2015-16.

A borough council spokesperson said: “Any surplus generated by parking is all invested back, in recent years the council has invested in our car parks to ensure they achieve the high standards to receive the ‘Park Mark’, and work is set to begin on the resurfacing of St Peter's Car Park to ensure the continuing availability of surface car parking.

“These figures mainly refer to pre-Covid, as they cover the period from April 2019- March 2020. During the ongoing Covid pandemic, we have of course seen a dramatic reduction in car park use and we are anticipating a net deficit from our car parks this year.”

RAC Foundation director Steve Gooding said: “Parking management is quite a money spinner for some local authorities, and nationally it is a big business.

“The surplus for 2019-20 is down a little on the year before which may in part reflect the impact of the first Covid lockdown which saw traffic levels plummet at the end of last March.

“The dip is likely to be much deeper for the current financial year given the range of restrictions over the past 12 months and the Government’s current plea that we should all stay at home if we can.

“Going forward there are likely to be many councils who are actually looking to cut parking charges as a way of encouraging more people to visit their high streets which are fighting for survival.”

The analysis is based on data from the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government.

David Renard, transport spokesman for the Local Government Association, said councils have to ensure spaces are available for drivers to keep traffic moving and avoid dangerous obstructions in the roads.

“With an increase of 10million cars on the road in the last 20 years, this has become increasingly challenging for councils.

“Income raised through on-street parking charges and parking fines is spent on running parking services.

“Any surplus is spent on essential transport projects, including fixing potholes and tackling congestion, but it would take more than a decade and £10billion to tackle our current roads repair backlog.”