Aberdeen City Council will be pocketing an extra estimated £620,000 from its upcoming increase in parking charges.
At the end of last year. the local authority decided to put up the cost of its parking permits by up to £140 a year for some areas from April 1.
Councillors also agreed to raise the prices of on-street and off-street council parking by 10% from the same date.
At the time of the decision, no information was made available about how much extra money such increases would generate for the council's coffers from motorist's pockets.
But the Press & Journal has now revealed the full extent of just how much the parking increases will cost drivers and benefit the council.
From April, depending on where you live in Aberdeen, the cost of your residential parking permit will be changing significantly.
Extra cash
The additional money the council expects it will make this year from the changes are as follows:
- Residential permits: £425,000
- On-street parking: £121,000
- Off-street parking: £74,000
Total: £620,000
The cost of an annual Aberdeen parking permit for some city-centre areas will go from the current £60 to £200.
Important step
At the council meeting in December when the changes were voted in, the SNP/Lib Dem administration argued it would be an important step towards making the Granite City a better place to live, work and visit.
SNP councillor Alex McLellan, the council's finance convener, said the new parking prices will help make Aberdeen a "city with significantly less vehicles in the city centre".
The parking price increases were criticised by Tory/Labour opposition councillors.
Conservative councillor Ryan Houghton said at the weekend that the new charges are "wrongly timed, and out of proportion".
He said: "Most people would understand an incremental increase of £20 or so.
"However, to go from £60 to £200 at a time of such financial difficulty is shocking.
'Forgotten' hope
"The administration hoped by deciding it in December last year, it would be forgotten about by the time of the budget.
"I don't think people will forget when they have to renew their permits and see what the cost of having an SNP/Lib Dem administration is."
But Mr McLellan again backed the upcoming increase in costs for motorists.
He said: "Officers brought forward these proposals which looked to increase the council's income from parking and bring our prices more in line with other major cities in Scotland - increased income will assist us in balancing the budget."
- It emerged last week that Aberdeen City Council officials are campaigning for a 10% increase in council tax - as the local authority toils to balance the books.
Leaked briefings prepared ahead of next month's budget meeting show finance chiefs think it could raise an extra £12.9million annually.
The proposed hike would take the annual bill for a Band D property in Aberdeen from £1,418.62 to £1,560.
The final bill for residents would end up even higher. Other charges, including those for water supply and sewage, would still be added to the total cost.
Options being put to councillors range from maintaining the current tariff - which would bring in around £129.2million - and increasing the levy by as much as 12%.
That uppermost suggestion would raise an extra £15.5million for the local authority in the next year, the city's accountants forecast.
Councillors meet on March 1 to agree the budget for 2023-24.