The Minster Badge would drop from £45 for two years to £15 a year, and cut community parking to £1.50 an hour. The Executive decides on 9 September.

Parking would get cheaper in Bishopthorpe Road, Micklegate, Heworth and The Groves under recommendations going to the council’s Executive next Wednesday, but only for York residents who buy a Minster Badge.

Two changes are proposed:

  • The Minster Badge falls from £45 for two years to £15 a year. The badge is digital and tied to one vehicle.
  • The discount in community parking areas rises from 30% to 50%. That takes the hourly rate for badge holders from £2.10 to £1.50, against a standard £3 an hour.

The discount in city centre car parks does not change (Review of CYC community car park and on-street parking charges in response to petitions, City of York Council Executive, 9 September 2026, paras 26 and 66).

Where the £1.50 rate would apply

The reduced rate would cover three community car parks and a list of on-street locations.

Car parks:

  • Bishopthorpe Road
  • Rowntree Park
  • East Parade, Heworth

On-street, the report names Lawrence Street, Micklegate, Priory Street, Clifton, Garden Street, Huntington Road, Lowther Street, Marygate, Park Grove, Penley’s Grove Street, The Crescent, The Mount, Townend Street and Union Terrace Street (para 66).

The list is written as “including” those streets, so it may not be the final word. Nothing changes on the day of the meeting either. The report says the changes cannot be made immediately because signs, the council website, parking management software and the pay by phone supplier all have to be updated first, and charge changes have to be publicised in advance (para 69).

What would change for Minster Badge holders Community car parks and on-street bays outside the city centre NOW PROPOSED Badge cost £45 for two years £15 a year Discount 30% 50% Rate per hour £2.10 £1.50 Without a badge the rate stays at £3 an hour. City centre car park discounts are unchanged. Source: Review of CYC community car park and on-street parking charges, City of York Council Executive, 9 September 2026, paragraph 66. Graphic by The York Times
The badge is per vehicle, so a two-car household would pay £15 twice.

Where this came from

Traders and residents in four areas petitioned the council after parking charges went up in 2025: Bishopthorpe Road, East Parade in Heworth, Micklegate and The Groves. The petitions were submitted under the right to challenge parking policies in the Traffic Management Act 2004, which obliged the council to review (para 2).

The council commissioned an independent review from Arup. Businesses told it they had fewer customers spending less, and linked that to the higher charges. Residents and visitors said they were using car parks less often, parking somewhere else, changing where they travelled to, and parking for shorter periods (paras 9 and 10).

The council’s own report then adds a caveat about that evidence. It says the national and international picture has dented consumer confidence and cut high street spending everywhere, which has nothing to do with local transport policy (para 10).

The report is candid about the limits of its own evidence

Paragraph 36 is unusually frank for a committee paper. It lists three limitations in the review data:

  • it covers only the four petitioned areas
  • it does not explore the effect on people who already travel by bus, bike or on foot
  • the surveys used simple questionnaires, respondents were mostly self-selected, there was no sampling design, questionnaire testing was limited and no statistical analysis was done

The conclusion follows directly: the review “should not be considered as a city-wide car parking review” and is instead “a limited exercise to present the feedback received from businesses and mainly car-borne visitors for the four areas” (para 37).

The Place Scrutiny Committee, which saw the findings in June 2026, added its own warning. It told the Executive to consider all the review’s recommendations while noting they take no account of the council’s actual powers, its relationship with the York and North Yorkshire Combined Authority, its capacity to deliver, or whether the recommendations are workable (para 39).

What it costs, and what it works against

The council puts the price of the change at roughly £22,000 in lost badge income, based on current holders, plus about £7,000 a year from the bigger community discount. Both figures come with the caveat that more people may buy badges and park more, offsetting the loss (para 22).

The report also states plainly that the discount cuts against the council’s own transport targets. It expects more car use and more mileage to these locations, while arguing the citywide effect will be limited because the discount applies in few places and only to York residents with a badge (para 68).

Those targets come from the Local Transport Strategy adopted in July 2024: a 20% cut in miles driven by 2030, a 50% increase in public transport use, and a doubling of active travel (para 13).

Blue Badge holders keep free unlimited parking (para 26).

Three other things the Executive is asked to agree

Beyond the charges, three process changes are recommended (para 26):

  • A parking strategy for York, developed as part of the wider Movement and Place Plan and a kerbside strategy. It would cover parking near places of worship. Cost is estimated at £80,000 to £150,000 depending on scope, funded from transport budgets and the Combined Authority (para 23).
  • An informal consultation stage before the council decides on significant parking charge increases, defined as rises above the standard uplift applied to council fees and charges.
  • A revised annual parking account report, setting out in more detail what parking revenue is and how it is reinvested.

What it means for you

Do not rush to buy a badge, and do not expect a refund. If you already hold a £45 two-year badge it stays valid, and no refunds will be given to anyone who wants to switch to the £15 annual badge. You can apply for the annual badge when your current one expires (para 69).

The badge is per vehicle. It is digital and registered to a registration number, so a second car needs a second badge.

If you do not buy a badge, nothing gets cheaper. The standard community rate stays at £3 an hour, and the Minster Badge is only available to York residents.

You can speak at the meeting. The Executive meets at 4.30pm on Wednesday 9 September at West Offices, Station Rise. Registration to speak closes at 5pm on Monday 7 September through the council’s meetings page, and the meeting is webcast.

Decisions can be called in until 4pm on Wednesday 16 September (agenda front sheet). Called-in items go to the Corporate Scrutiny Committee.

The Groves may not get everything it asked for. Its petition complained about charge increases and about the traffic regulation orders themselves. The review looked only at charges. Any further look at restrictions there, including the resident parking scheme, would come through the council’s annual review of parking restrictions or the new parking strategy (para 34).

Our parking in York page has the current tariffs for every council car park, the on-street charges, and the free periods, all checked against the council’s own schedule.