Council urged to waive parking charges for key workers.
The Conservative group on Birmingham city council have called on the city council to waive its on street and off street parking charges for all those required to work through the Covid-19 outbreak. With the council set to increase its fees from April, the Conservative group have argued that whilst the country is on lockdown, anyone who has to continue to work to provide vital services should not have to pay more to do so.
Group leader Cllr Robert Alden (Con, Erdington) said: “We need to be doing all we can to help those heroes who are putting themselves at risk to help us all stay safe during this outbreak. That means all those that can staying at home in order to protect the NHS and save lives, but for those that have travel into work, waiving parking charges in this period will go towards helping them comply with social distancing rules and prevent them being hit with a further financial burden.”
Cllr Ewan Mackey (Con, Sutton Mere Green), deputy leader of the Conservative group said: “Whilst in normal times you want to encourage the use of public transport, these are not normal times and so for those who have to travel to provide vital services, they should be allowed to feel they can use their car if they wish. This will also help reduce demand on buses and trains and so keep the people who rely on them safer on their journey by allowing them to distance themselves more from other users.”