Proposed parking charges changes causing consternation in Westport

Mayo County Council has opened a public consultation on proposed changes to parking charges across Westport town and Murrisk, with some daily rates set to increase by as much as 300 percent. The changes, which have not been reviewed since 2018, would see hourly rates standardised at €1 across most zones — but it is the changes to daily rates, and the scrapping of the daily option in one of the town's busiest car parks, that are generating the most debate.

The proposals are open for public inspection until September 15, with formal written submissions accepted until September 29. Details are available to view at the Westport Municipal District office, and the Westport Chamber has asked that written observations be sent to it by email before September 20, in addition to submissions made directly to the council. If adopted, the new charges would come into effect on January 4, 2027.

What's changing?

The Pink Zone is the one area untouched by the proposals as motorists will continue to get one free hour followed by two hours for €1. Councillors have noted Westport is the only town in Mayo operating this system.

However, other zones face significant increases. The Blue Zone, currently charged at 60c per hour with a daily rate of €3, would rise to €1 per hour with a daily rate of €5.

James Street and Mill Street car parks, both currently charged at 70c per hour with a €3 daily rate, would increase to €1 per hour, but with no daily option available.

The High Street/Upper Mill Street car park, currently 60c per hour with a €2 daily rate, is proposed to rise to €1 per hour and €5 daily — representing one of the steepest daily increase of 150 percent.

Leisure Park car park, currently 70c per hour with a €3 daily rate, would also move to €1 per hour and €5 daily under the proposals.

Permit charges across the zones are also included in the plans, with James Street and Mill Street permits proposed at €350 per year or €35 per month, the Blue Zone at €200 per year or €20 per month, and High Street at €240 per year or €25 per month. The Pink Zone would continue to have no business permits available, alongside residential permits, while the Leisure Park has no permit option.

Annual permit charges are also part of the package: €350 a year (or €35 a month) for James Street and Mill Street, €200 a year (€20 a month) for the Blue Zone, and €240 a year (€25 a month) for High Street. The Pink Zone and Leisure Park will continue to have no permit option.

Parking fines would also rise sharply, from €40 to €75.

Mayo County Council says the proposals are aimed at supporting effective parking management, improving accessibility, encouraging greater turnover of spaces in the town centre, and funding the ongoing maintenance and development of local parking infrastructure. Any additional revenue raised would be ring-fenced for reinvestment in the local area rather than absorbed into the wider county budget.

‘Jammed’ carparks

Local councillor Peter Flynn said the removal of the daily rate at James Street is a direct response to chronic congestion at that specific car park, which he says is “jammed from one end of the day to the other” with little to no turnover — a situation he says is hurting businesses on James Street and Bridge Street. Mill Street, by contrast, will keep its daily rate and is being positioned as the alternative for those who need to park for longer periods.

Flynn also used the consultation to raise wider questions about how parking is managed in the town, pointing to Westport's unusually high rate of parking fines compared with the rest of Mayo, the operation of loading bays and delivery times, and parking pressure in residential areas near the town centre. He argued that traffic congestion in Westport during peak season had been 'appalling' this year, and said the review was an opportunity to look at how drivers could be encouraged to use car parks on approach roads like Distillery Road rather than circling the town centre looking for a space.

Cllr Brendan Mulroy struck a different note, stating plainly that he opposes parking charges in principle and will vote against the proposals.

‘Unacceptable’ for workers

Graham Byrne, owner of Krēm on Bridge Street, told The Mayo News that his main concern is not the hourly rate but the loss of the daily option at James Street and Mill Street, which he said would hit town-centre workers hardest. Under the changes, he noted, someone working an eight-hour shift would see their daily parking cost rise from €3 to €8.

Byrne proposed a discounted staff parking permit for town-centre workers, paid weekly by direct debit and accessible with proof of employment, as a way of protecting workers without undermining the turnover the charges are designed to encourage.

He also warned that rising charges could push shoppers towards out-of-town retail parks, where parking is free, arguing that Westport's town centre depends on people being willing to park and walk. Byrne said that if charges are increasing, the public deserves a transparent breakdown of how the revenue is spent, and that money raised in Westport should visibly go back into things that draw people into the town, such as Christmas lights and local events.

Dr Shane Curran, a James Street business owner, put figures on the impact for his own staff. With no daily rate left at James Street, he calculated that workers there would face at least €9 a day, or €45 a week, once the hourly charge applies for a full shift — up from €15 a week under the current €3 daily rate. As an employer of 11 staff on James Street, he called the increase 'unacceptable' and unfair to people who work in the town. He added that other car parks retain a daily rate, leaving James Street as an outlier.

Former Cllr Christy Hyland has called for workers in the town to be given parking permits at a reduced rate and says that the town badly needs a new carpark, something that was mooted back in 2018.

Cllr Flynn counters these arguments by noting that 菟eople don't have to park in the town centre and that there are plenty of car parks around on the outskirts of town such as the skatepark, Gaelscoil and Attireesh and by the fire station, that are free and within walking distance of the town centre.

Giedrius Girdzius raised concerns from a different angle, arguing that the money already being raised through parking charges and fines isn't visible in the state of the town's roads and car parks. He described potholes, bumps and cuts in the tarmac across Westport, and singled out Distillery Road as particularly poor, saying his own car's bumper nearly scraped the road driving over pedestrian crossings. Having driven in many towns, he said Westport's roads compare poorly, and questioned where the revenue from fines and charges is actually going.

A tourist's-eye view

Rachel Caruana, who runs a B&B in Knockranny with her husband Julian, said visitors are often struck by how low parking charges currently are compared with what they're used to at home. Guests from the US, Germany and Belgium, she said, are often surprised the rates are so cheap.

“When you tell them it's 70 cents an hour or three euros for the whole day, they they nearly laugh,” she tells The Mayo News.

While she was sympathetic to workers who pay for parking daily as 'part of their bread and butter', she argued a modest increase would make little difference to short-stay tourists and said feedback from guests suggests Westport remains inexpensive by comparison.

Her husband Julian Caruana pointed to what he sees as inconsistencies in how car parks are used and priced, noting that he pays more in car park fees for four gym visits a week than he does for his gym membership, and questioning why camper vans — of which he says more than ten can be seen at a time in the Leisure Park car park over summer — are permitted to occupy spaces in the same way as regular vehicles.

Have your say

Submissions can be made to Mayo County Council directly or via the Westport Chamber ([email protected]) before September 20, with the formal public inspection period running until September 15 and written observations accepted until September 29.

Funded by the Local Democracy Reporting Scheme