THE ability to purchase parking tickets to cover multiple days has now been introduced in Ilkley thanks to lobbying from Ilkley BID.

The BID have been raising concerns with Bradford Council about the impact of the recent parking changes in the town on hospitality businesses that rely on custom from weekend and long stay visitors to Ilkley.

People staying in the town centre overnight or wanting to leave their car to collect the next day have been unable to do so unless they either set an alarm to pay on the Pay & Phone app or were up and back at the car park for 8am to pay for the next charging period. New software has now been installed in the meters of all long-stay car parking areas including the car parks on Wharfe View Road and Railway Road. The machines will accept a maximum of £20 in cash, effectively allowing people to park for up to four full days, depending on the time of arrival.

Helen Rhodes, BID Manager, said: “Ilkley is a fantastic place to spend the weekend and we want the people staying here to have a relaxed and enjoyable time, encouraging them to make return visits. We acknowledge wider concerns about the parking changes but this does at least give people the opportunity to leave their car in a long-stay area without the need to be back to collect it or pay more at 8am. This is particularly important for our businesses with accommodation. We will continue to liaise with the Bradford Council on the other areas of concern for businesses but we are very pleased that they have listened and acted quickly on this particular issue.”

Ian Collins from The Dalesway said: “The lack of overnight parking was a problem for many of our customers so it’s good to hear that the BID and the council have worked together to find a solution.”

Long stay parking is available in the car parks at Railway Road and Wharfe View Road and on-street at the following locations: Bridge Lane, Castle Road, Chantry Drive, Chapel Lane, Cowpasture Road, Grove Road, Kings Road, New Brook Street, Railway Road and Weston Road.