Tuesday December 2nd 2025
North Berwick town centre streets will have parking meters installed
Written by Local Democracy Reporter, Marie Sharp
The cost of introducing parking charges in town centres across East Lothian is expected to run into millions in its first few years, while annual revenue from smaller towns could be as little as £4,000, new papers have revealed.
The local authority has published its proposals to charge for parking in four towns across the county.
And it reveals while the scheme is likely to bring in nearly £250,000 a year in its biggest town – Musselburgh – in market town Haddington, where the council headquarters are based, the estimated annual revenue over ten years would be just £4,000.
The plans will be put before elected councillors next week for approval with a similar scheme to charge for parking in North Berwick already underway.
In Musselburgh the proposals include a financial model which estimates the initial cost of introducing the scheme, which includes on street and off street parking charges as well as residents permits, as £776,000, with the annual cost of running it predicted to be £227,000 and annual income forecast at £540,000 (gross). The surplus revenue over the 10-year period is forecast to be approximately £236,000 per annum.
Similarly, in Tranent, the estimated high return on parking charges with initial costs of £271,000 to introduce it, an annual operating cost of £158,000 and annual income forecast to be £323,000 (gross), creating a surplus revenue over ten years as approximately £138,000 per annum.
But in Haddington the initial cost of £372,000 and annual operating costs of £163,000 are compared to an income forecast at £204,000 (gross) making the reported surplrus revenue over ten years around £4,000 per annum.
And in Dunbar it estimates an initial cost of £196,000, annual costs of £163,000 and revenue of £193,000 (gross) equating to an annual return of £10,000 a year over ten years.
Papers presenting parking charge proposals to councillors for approval will be discussed at a meeting of elected members next week.
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