MARRIED pensioners who came to Alton two years ago to be closer to family say they may have to move on after experiencing what they feel to be an “unsustainable hike” in the cost of parking.

Frances and Jeremy Fagan live on Grove Road and have no off-road parking, but they thought they had addressed that issue when they bought a season ticket to park in neighbouring Mount Pleasant car park.

For the past two years this arrangement has worked well. As residents they have paid £340 for each 12-monthly period – equivalent to around two-thirds of the annual season-ticket cost – a reduction awarded to residents with no parking of their own.

But at the end of September they were informed that the charge from October 1 would increase by 38 per cent to £470, and if this is an indication of what is to come over the next few years, they may have to up sticks once again for pastures new.

Mrs Fagan said: “It is an additional expense of nearly £500 on the cost of running a car. Next year, if we had a similar increase we would have to give up the car, but there is only so far you can go on a pension.”

Having received the letter notifying them of the price hike, the Fagans drove to East Hampshire District Council’s (EHDC) offices at Penns Place in Petersfield to find out why.

“We couldn’t believe it was to go up by £140. We wouldn’t have minded quite so much if we thought the extra money was going toward car park improvements, but there is no evidence of that,” said Mrs Fagan.

More worryingly, the couple were told that the intention was to increase car-parking fees over the next few years and that by 2021/22 there would be no discount for residents using EHDC car parks.

If prices continue to rise in this way the couple fear they could end up paying £1,000 per year for the privilege of parking in Mount Pleasant car park – with no guarantee of a parking space.

This year, from October 1, the charges for a season ticket in Mount Pleasant car park – one of three in the town benefiting from a lower band of charges – are £200 for a three-month pass, £350 for six months, and £680 for 12 months – with roughly a third deducted for residents.

While the majority of residents choose to park wherever they can find a space on the surrounding streets, the Fagans argue that if you need to park close to home there is no other way than to pay the increases in parking fees.

By way of explanation, an EHDC spokesman said that in April 2017 EHDC reviewed its car park strategy and set out a new plan for the next five years, and this included a review of the range of car park season tickets.

The spokesman said: “Until that point the council had offered a large number of different types of season tickets with a wide variety of discounts and prices depending on various criteria. It was considered that this was confusing for customers and the review looked again at season tickets with a view to making them simpler and fairer.

“Up until 2017, residents who lived near a car park and had no off-street parking could claim a 50 per cent discount on a season ticket. Non-residents and workers who regularly visit the town would have to pay full price. EHDC wanted to address this disparity.

“As a result, as well as streamlining the number of permits on offer, the council also agreed to phase out the discount afforded to residents for season tickets.

“The discount is being reduced by 10 per cent per year until April 2020, at which time residents will be asked to pay the full price of a season ticket at Mount Pleasant car park, which is £680. This will equate to a daily charge of £1.49 for parking in the car park, compared to £6 per day without the permit.”