Controversial plans to charge for parking in and around Harpenden High Street have been delayed until 2025.

Cllr Helen Campbell, chair of St Albans City & District Council’s public realm committee, said the postponement would “give businesses more certainty”.

Under the original proposals, drivers would be charged £2.50 per hour to park for up to two hours and would be able to park for free twice per day for up to 20 minutes.

The changes would apply to bays that are currently free for 30 minutes, one hour or two hours in the High Street, Station Road, Arden Grove, Church Green and other roads.

Parking charges in Harpenden have been postponedParking charges in Harpenden have been postponed (Image: Christopher Day, LDRS) But Cllr Campbell said the council are now considering changes to the plans, including:

  • Charging for parking only after 9am
  • Switching to one free parking period of 30 minutes per day, rather than two periods of 20 minutes
  • Allowing drivers to pay for parking in 30-minute chunks

A full report on this summer’s consultation will be published “sometime after October 17”, Cllr Campbell said, with any charges being implemented no earlier than January.

Explaining the decision to propose paid-for on-street parking in Harpenden, Cllr Campbell said the council’s on-street parking service had a total deficit of £1.5m over the last five years.

Arden Grove, HarpendenArden Grove, Harpenden (Image: Christopher Day, LDRS) She continued: “The council has a stark choice; find ways to make services pay for themselves and become sustainable, or ignore the gaps, let them pile up, and risk not being able to present a balanced budget and falling into effective ‘bankruptcy’.

“The decisions we have to make are rarely palatable to all, but the way local authorities are funded by central government means something has to give if a council is to stay afloat and able to deliver services for the benefit of all.”

The council’s budget for 2024/25 suggested parking charges would bring in additional income of £185,000 for 2024/25 and £268,000 in future years.

Cllr Campbell said there had been “inaccurate” claims that “the decision had already been taken before the consultation” and that “the council is looking to profit out of people parking in Harpenden”.

She insisted the council will not be making a surplus, and said it was “true” that “a decision was taken in the council’s budget that the council would propose on-street charging, and that necessitated a consultation”.

Earlier this week, Harpenden Town Council agreed a motion saying it “does not support any charges for on-street parking in Harpenden Town Centre”.

St Albans City & District Council rejected a previous proposal from the town council that they form a partnership to “explore” alternative proposals.

Richard Scott, a town councillor, told the Local Democracy Reporting Service that Harpenden residents have “totally and comprehensively rejected” the district council’s plans to charge for parking.

Earlier this month, councillors received a petition calling on them to rethink the plans to introduce parking. The original petition gained 1,774 signatures, with paper and Change.org versions of the same petition receiving 1,264 and 6,022 signatures respectively.

Fiona Thomas, who runs boutique Oui and spoke on behalf of the Harpenden Retailers’ Association at a public realm committee, warned businesses would lose customers if the charges are implemented, and said: “Many independent retailers would be unable to withstand this loss of trade and would be forced to close.”