Pay and Display for Ilfracombe?

18 May 2010, 16:31 | Updated: 18 May 2010, 17:41

Proposals to make some of Ilfracomeb's on-street parking Pay and Display are under discussion.

Devon County Council are holding a countywide review of parking in market and coastal towns - and on street Pay and Display parking is seen as one of the ways to improve the situation.

The council say it'll encourage a higher turnover of visitors by preventing people using spaces all day, and make parking enforcement officers more efficient, as they'll only have to visit each location once.

Councillor Geoff Fowler said: "People that come in through the High Street have nowhere to park anyway and I think this might just free up some of the spaces for people who do want to come into the town - especially the High Street - just for a short space of time."

To hear more from Councillor Fowler, click here.

But local businesses aren't convinced it'll help.  One Ilfracombe businessman said: "People do tend to hog the spaces and stay a while, but you're always going to get that, whether people just keep feeding the meter or stay there anyway."

The plans could also be extended to other North Devon towns like Combe Martin.

Tell us what you think - How should parking be improved in our area?  Will Pay and Display encourage visitors, or put them off?  Leave a comment below.

Dave Baxter said: "As an Ilfracombe resident and having had discussions with Cllr Fowler before concerning this issue and the problems already faced by residents of the seafront and harbour areas.

I feel that this latest proposal is just another revenue building exercise and a deliberate smack in the face for local people who find the problems associated with parking horrendous enough.

This proposal is simply making a bad situation worse." (18/05/2010)