Newcastle city centre free parking after 7pm safe for now despite charges being mooted
There are no plans to impose new late-night parking charges in Newcastle, the city’s leadership says.
Senior councillors have moved to clarify their position after a local authority transport official revealed earlier this week that they were “not averse” to introducing new evening tariffs in the city centre.
It was suggested earlier this week that charges could be extended beyond the current cut off of 7pm, after which parking in on street bays and council-run multi-storey car parks in the city centre is free.
But Alex Hay, Newcastle City Council’s deputy leader, said on Friday that the Labour administration at the civic centre has no such plans.
Coun Hay said: “We value and support the bars, restaurants and venues that make a significant contribution to our city’s culture and night-time economy.
“We know that the provision of convenient and value for money parking on an evening is vital for these businesses and we have no plans to introduce parking charges in the city after 7pm.
“Our daytime parking fees are reviewed annually and set to ensure we can effectively manage demand for spaces across the city while also covering the costs of ensuring our car parks are safe and secure.
“We have not increased charges since April 2024, with the next review scheduled for early in 2026. Any proposed changes to daytime parking fees would be subject to consultation.”
The city council previously ran the Alive After Five scheme which provided free parking after 5pm in the city centre.
There were plans to scrap that and introduce charges until 10pm in 2022, but that was scaled back to 7pm following concerns about the impact on the hospitality sector and cultural venues who rely on evening visitors.
Speaking at the council’s finance and budget scrutiny committee earlier this week, council parking services manager Lynne Ryan said she was “not averse to considering night time charges” – but that it would be dependent on there being sufficient demand and the council being able to afford to pay enough staff to enforce the fares.
She also revealed that trials of later opening hours are planned at two popular multi-storey car parks in Dean Street and Grainger Town, both of which currently shut at midnight, in order to provide secure parking for staff working in the nighttime economy.