Vandalised coin parking machines will be replaced by Lancaster City Council - but at a cost of £4,500 each

Lancaster City Council is looking into re-introducing some pay by coin parking machines after that option was removed following a spate of thefts.

Last year, the council said that each vandalised machine would cost £3,500 to replace but now the actual cost to put each machine ‘in the ground’ is £4,500, reflecting any additional

costs over and above the purchase price.

“The cost of providing the option to pay by coins is expensive,” said Coun Nick Wilkinson, cabinet member for regeneration and local economy.

“They are a target for thieves and vandals and each one costs £4,500 to replace, eating into the revenue which funds vital services for the community.”

Last autumn, cash boxes were removed from local car parks after ten machines were vandalised and money stolen from them.

Since then, drivers have paid either by card or the RingGo mobile app, leading to some complaints about the credit card facility failing several times.

The cash boxes removal was described as ‘temporary’ with the intention of replacing them once the thieves were caught.

However, Lancashire Police have closed the case with no culprits found.

“This leaves us in a difficult position as while we want to try and provide people with the option to pay by coins, we cannot afford to simply keep replacing machines every time they

are vandalised,” said Coun Wilkinson.

“We are looking at how we can ‘target harden’ certain machines and place them in busy areas where there is the most demand to pay by coins and that are covered by CCTV.

“This would allow us to provide the option to pay by coins in the most popular areas while hopefully reducing the risk of providing a target for thieves.”

In recent years, the majority of people paying to park with coins has reduced significantly with most using cards or paying via the RingGo mobile app with its 20p ‘convenience fee’.

Between last August and October, ten parking payment machines on city council car parks were vandalised and cash stolen from them totalling around £40,000.

Although the case is closed, new information is welcome.

Anyone offering assistance should contact Lancashire Police on 101 quoting log 0257 of October 7.