Parking charges are being reintroduced in all Aberdeenshire Council’s pay and display car parks from today.
The local authority suspended fees as coronavirus took hold last March in an attempt to reduce the risk of spreading the virus by eliminating the need for the public to touch ticket machines.
Now motorists are being reminded the charges will resume today – with the council arguing it helps ensure spaces are available for shoppers making essential trips.
Parking is 50p for up to an hour, £1 for up to two hours, £3 for up to five hours or £5 for up to nine hours and payment can be made by coins, card or mobile app RingGo.
A spokesman said: “Parking charges are being reintroduced at our pay and display car parks from today.
“Charging is a way of managing the turnover within our pay and display car parks to ensure availability for shoppers and other visitors to our town centres during the day and it helps bring our facilities closer to covering their own costs.”
Fees are also being introduced today at the council’s electric vehicle (EV) charging points, at a rate of 21p/kWh.
Councillors agreed to roll out the charges due to the demand of the machines after it was revealed that in 11 months last year, the volume of charging across the region had already exceeded the whole of 2019.
When the EV charging points were first brought in, Transport Scotland had expected councils to provide the facility for free to encourage a bigger uptake. However, due to demand, and increased costs in maintaining the machines, it has been agreed fees can be charged.
All customers will be charged once a month for using tariffs, with their invoice broken down into each transaction.
