Parking charges come into force on Bexhill seafront

The new scheme will see motorists charged to park along the length of De La Warr Parade and West Parade.

The parking bays on the sea-side of De La Warr Parade are pay and display and motorists can pay to park for the whole day.

On the land-side of the road, there is a share of permit and pay and display bays, while sections of the road are limited to two hours of parking (a charge of £2.70) and other sections are limited to four hours of pay and display.

The charges are in place seven days a week between the hours of 8am and 6pm.

Sandy Grover, who lives in West Parade, said the introduction of the fees has caused a great deal of confusion for those visiting the town.

She said a parking meter was installed outside her house two weeks ago, which confused visitors about when the parking charges were going live.

Now the charges have gone live, she hopes the situation will become clearer for people visiting the town: “We get lots of people here on holiday who are maybe visiting the town for the first time. As the meter is directly outside my house, some people have knocked on my door and asked for advice, which makes a bit of a mockery of the Covid regulations.

“People are used to parking here for free so I guess we’ll see how these changes are rolled out.”

The new parking charges are as follows:

– 15p for seven minutes

– 30p for 10 minutes

– 45p for 15 minutes

– 90p for 30 minutes

– £1.70 1 hour

– £2.70 2 hours

The introduction of the fees comes on the day when control of enforcing parking regulations was handed to East Sussex County Council, and will no longer be handled by Sussex Police.

Announcing the decision earlier this month, councillor Claire Dowling, lead member for transport and environment, said: “Limited police resources meant there was often a lack of enforcement in Rother, which caused concern among residents and the district council.

“Following a legal process and approval from the Department for Transport, we will be able to introduce more rigorous enforcement and tackle some of the problem areas that are of the greatest concern to residents.

“As well as easing congestion caused by inconsiderate parking, the scheme can improve road safety, air quality and increase the turnover of parking spaces making it easier for visitors and shoppers to park.”

The introduction of on-street parking charges also coincides with Rother District Council bringing parking charges to eight Rother car parks – mostly all of which are in Bexhill.