Statement by TUV Bannside councillor Timothy Gaston:
“The fact that the new councils will have control over car park charges for many car parks close to town centres presents us with an opportunity to do a little to help business in these times of economic hardship.
“Once bustling high streets and their remaining businesses are now struggling to survive. Aesthetically pleasing artwork on empty shop fronts may bring cosmetic change, but is no substitute for kick-starting the economy as it simply just papers over the existing cracks instead of fixing them.
“One of the drains on our town centres is excessive car park charges. Many people question why they should pay to shop in town centres while at out of town developments they can park for free. At the moment some DRD facilities for parking are free while others charge. I believe it would make more sense if the facilities where standardized and charges were kept to a minimum across the board.
“Another scheme which has operated successfully in other parts of the Province has been the free car parking at certain times of the year as an incentive to get people into the town to shop. Personally I believe that we should consider this for Ballymena, Carrickfergus and Larne in the new super council.”