Two Newquay car parks are to have their pay-on-exit barriers removed

Cornwall Council have confirmed that the pay-on-exit barriers at St George's Road and Manor Road car parks will be removed.

The work will take place between now and April and includes four other Cornwall Council car parks across the county. They will be returned to the former pay and display system.

A spokesperson for Cornwall Council said: "Once the switchover dates are confirmed, we’ll put up signs at the car park entrances and payment terminals to notify you in advance. If you don’t regularly park in these car parks, please check the signs before leaving your vehicle to ensure you pay correctly."

Earlier this month, a campaign group was set up to fight Cornwall Council's plans to transfer 28 council-owned car parks to one of its arms-length companies. Concerns were raised that, if leased to third parties, enforcement at the car parks could be managed by private companies using Automatic Number Plate Recognition (ANPR) cameras, similar to those already in operation at Little Fistral in Newquay.

Under the proposals, which went out to public consultation, 28 car parks across Cornwall - out of the 260 owned and managed by the council - would be removed from the existing parking order. The council describes the move as "part of a wider plan to decentralise the management of various Council assets."

In the Newquay area, six car parks are earmarked for the scheme, including Tregunnel Hill and Watergate Bay.

Cornwall Council maintains that the proposals aim to ensure long-term maintenance of the car parks while enabling the council to allocate its resources to other priorities.