CRITICS have stoked fears Chelmsford City Council is running its car park portfolio like a business after generating £6 million revenue from car parks last year.
The 2013/14 revenue was eight per cent higher than the previous financial year, its largest year-on-year increase in half a decade, with £2.9 million of that profit.
High Chelmer shopping centre manager Mick McDonagh said: "As long as that money, the profits, is reused for infrastructure work, and not lost in the council coffers, then it is to be applauded.
"That's my concern, that it might get lost and won't find its way to the much needed public realm works."
The figures, published in an RAC Foundation report this month, ranks the city council's parking charge profit as the 44th highest out of 353 UK authorities.
Braintree was ranked 205th with a £522,000 profit and Maldon 238th with £300,000.
The £2.9 million Chelmsford surplus, made from its 19 off-street car parks, is £3.1 million greater than its £2.6 million equivalent made last year.
It typically costs £1.20 to leave a car for one hour in a long or short stay car park in Chelmsford.
In January last year, local businesses reacted in outrage at ever-increasing parking charges when we revealed the council's profits from last year.
Mr McDonagh would like to see money spent on a third park and ride, which cost £3 per weekday at Sandon and Chelmer Valley, which would alleviate traffic in the city centre.
"If you look at other successful city councils such as Oxford and Cambridge, they rely heavily on park and ride which I have advocated long before the first one was born in Chelmsford," he said.
City council leader Councillor Roy Whitehead said any profit helps keep council tax down for residents.
Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government , Eric Pickles, however, told the Chronicle the council's profit must be ploughed back into transport infrastructure.
Mr Pickles said: "They can't use this money to keep the council tax down, they can only use this money on transport related issues, so if they're doing that they might be open to a legal challenge.
"They have to give consideration to ensure that local businesses prosper and local small businesses prosper.
"Reasonable parking charges are good, but those kinds of figures are well and truly coin."
Responding to Mr Pickles, Cllr Whitehead said only parking fines and charges from on-street areas are ring-fenced for transport infrastructure.
"He is right but only in part," said Cllr Whitehead. But what we own from our own car parks, which are property assets, are ordinary revenue. Revenue is going up partly because car parks are being used more and more by people coming to shop and work in Chelmsford.
"This will increase when the Bond Street car park is closed on January 3 for the John Lewis development and we'll see people parking in our car parks.
"We've seen a surge in people wanting to come and take permits in our car parks so revenue increased which does help us keep council tax down."
