Carpark use falls by over 15,000 amid price hike

The number of cars using Cork’s main off-street parking options has plummeted by more than 15,000 since parking charges were hiked.

The figures emerged as the northbound lane of the city’s main street was closed yesterday for the summer to facilitate public transport upgrades, sparking fears of another massive drop in traffic volumes into the city.

It prompted calls last night for the scrapping of the increased parking charges introduced by the city council last December, for incentivised parking deals, and for the St Patrick’s Street upgrade work to be done at night.