My Lib Dem colleagues and I have criticised Woking Borough Council’s decision to increase the cost of parking in Woking town centre after the delays and problems with the Victoria Square development.

The Council’s Victoria Square development was originally meant to open in Autumn 2020, but its opening has been delayed twice. Firstly, to Spring 2021 and now it will not open until Spring 2022. Panels on the outside of the new Hilton hotel fell off the building in October, resulting in Victoria Way being closed until the New Year.  The main road through Woking is unlikely to reopen until the end of January.

Despite all these problems in Woking, the Conservative-run Council has agreed to raise the cost of parking in Woking town centre.  The Council will increase the cost of parking in Woking’s car parks to £1.60 an hour and the daily charge would go up by £1 from 31st January.

I cannot believe the Borough Council is going to hike parking charges before the Victoria Square development is open, and probably even before Victoria Way has reopened following construction issues with the new Hilton hotel.

Higher parking charges after all this disruption is the last thing Woking needs.  The continuing closure of Victoria Way is having a massive impact on the town’s businesses and visitors.  Tory financial and project mismanagement is having a huge detrimental impact on our town.