East Sussex County Council will soon be seeking views on plans to bring in charges at the free car park at Broomhill Sands in Camber.
On Monday October 20, Cllr Claire Dowling, the authority’s lead member for transport and environment, agreed for officers to begin consultation on plans to introduce pay-and-display parking charges at the car park on Lydd Road.
Before making her decision, Cllr Dowling heard how the council is considering the introduction of charges as a way to cover the costs of annual maintenance and management of the site, which is said to have a maximum capacity of 300 spaces and is used by around 13,000 vehicles each year.
Any excess income from this proposal, the report says, would be used to support management of the nearby Camber Sands Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI).
If introduced, the charges could potentially be set at £2 for up to an hour, £4 for up to two hours and £6 for up to four hours. The council could also operate a seasonal all day rate (i.e. more than four hours), which the report says could be set at £8 during the summer season — between April 1 and September 30 —and £6 for the rest of the year.
Parking for blue badge holders, cycles and motorcycles would remain free, however.
These charges would be significantly less than other car parks in the area. These car parks, which are operated by Rother District Council, can cost visitors as much as £24 per day during the summer months.
During the meeting, Cllr Kathryn Field, a Liberal Democrat county councillor who is also member of Rother District Council’s cabinet, asked whether the prices may be too low given the charges nearby.
Officers said the charges were considered to be sufficient to cover the management and maintenance costs and had been set to reflect the car park’s more basic facilities when compared to those run by the district council.
Cllr Dowling agreed to launch an informal consultation on the proposals. This is expected to see the county council seek views from residents’ groups, Camber Parish Council and two businesses — The Kitesurf Centre and Frankie’s at the Beach — which each lease part of the car park from the council.
This informal consultation would also seek views from Rother District Council.
Depending on the results of the informal consultation, the county council could then begin the process of implementing a Traffic Regulation Order (TRO). This process would involve a formal consultation process, with any responses eventually considered by the county council’s planning committee.
