Tipperary houses with more than one car 'need permits to park'

A change in the policy for issuing street parking permits for residents of houses, flats and apartments in Clonmel has been requested.
Cllr Niall Dennehy told a meeting of Clonmel Borough District that two adults with two cars living in the same property surely deserved more than one parking permit.
He said that permits were to facilitate residents in areas where there were parking meters on the street.
They had heard of a figure of €1.4 million that was collected in parking charges in Clonmel each year, yet that money wasn’t necessarily spent in the town and ended up in the Tipperary County Council coffers in Nenagh.
It wasn’t that people expected to be able to park their vehicles outside their front door, but this policy of issuing just one permit per household needed to be changed.
Cllr Richie Molloy felt it was unfair to issue just one parking permit to houses where there was more than one car.
Most households had a second car and he supported the idea of issuing a second parking permit in those cases.
District Administrator Jim Dillon confirmed that one permit was issued per household.
At present the council was running into difficulties in a number of streets where permits had been issued, but they were running out of parking spaces on the streets. This meant that residents had to move to another street to park their vehicles, which in turn meant there was insufficient parking available for motorists on that street.
Cllr John Fitzgerald said “we’re in a housing crisis and people are forced to use the limited supply of houses and flats in the town centre”.
If people were sharing accommodation this matter should be looked at again, he said.
Cllr Fitzgerald accepted what the District Administrator had stated about streets being backed up with cars all day long, but people should be able to park within easy walking distance of their dwelling.
It might be an idea for permit holders to be allowed to park in a car park near to them, he stated.
Cllr Siobhán Ambrose suggested that they have a look at how many permits had been issued and the areas that they covered.
That would provide a clearer picture of the situation.
District Mayor Michael Murphy said that if two vehicles were registered at the same address they each should have a parking permit.
District Manager Sinead Carr said they would do their best to deal with this matter before the summer recess.

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