WE used to visit York once a month, but now find the experience so difficult and inconvenient we are taking our business elsewhere.

The parking has always been too expensive, but there has never been a shortage. Today in our new car, a Land Rover Defender, we could not gain entry to our usual car parks as all were limited to vehicles of less than two metres in height. We avoid multi-storey car parks, but even those we visited at ground level were inaccessible.

We do not find it convenient to use Park&Ride as we visit shops and businesses away from the centre and make numerous trips back to our car throughout our day.

Added to this, Lendal Bridge is closed during the day and a massive detour is needed to get from one side of town to the other.

So we gave up. We took our business to Monks Cross. We parked for free, we parked easily and we parked near the shops and restaurant we wanted to visit. The smaller local shops and businesses we usually frequent missed out on our money.

In future we will take our business to Leeds or Hull. York has reached a tipping point. While I can understand the need to encourage cars away from the centre, a balance has to be found or money and shoppers will be driven away.

Jon Tite and family, Eastgate, Driffield.

 

• SHOULD someone explain to Coun James Alexander about the “shortfall” in the finances for the car parking for the city of York (The Press, January 29)?

If the council does not attract people to see this beautiful city of ours, or if they put stupid restrictions in the way of strangers finding their way to the car parks, what else can they expect?

I can see a further shortfall in the future, if the letters from annoyed people caught in the Lendal Bridge trap are anything to go by.

Rumours have it that it has already been decided Lendal Bridge will be closed permanently after the trial period.

I do hope that this has not been decided before the people of York have had a chance to have their say.

Finally, to put this target figure of £6 million for car parking into perspective, there is a well-known saying – Don’t count your chickens before they hatch.

LJ Steels, Tadcaster, York.