Transport / HIAL working on getting Sumburgh Airport car parking charge reinstated
THE PARKING charge at Sumburgh Airport is expected to return in the future – but it remains unclear exactly when.
Passengers driving to the airport and leaving their vehicle in the car park currently do not have to pay the £3 per day charge due to a fault with the barriers.
A spokesperson for airport operator HIAL said there has been technical issues with the car parking system, which has been affected by “harsh weather”.
The car parking barriers have been out of action since the beginning of May.
The £3-a-day charge was introduced at Sumburgh in 2018, as well as at airports in Kirkwall and Stornoway.
It was controversial at the time, with calls for a retrospective islands impact assessment on the charge, which was introduced by the Scottish Government-owned HIAL to generate more income.
Despite the service four public bus running to the airport, some felt the location of Sumburgh – 25 miles from Lerwick at the southern tip of Shetland – meant the fee was unfair.
It is understood that HIAL may have missed out on nearly £27,000 in income between May, when the car park barriers were taken out of service, and late October. That figure based off revenue for the same period last year.
A spokesperson for HIAL said the charge has been “temporarily waived” in the meantime.
“We are currently working on a solution that will address the issues and once resolved we intend to reinstate the parking charge,” they added.
“We will provide advance notice prior to charges being reintroduced.”
When the scheme was active, car parking was free for the first two hours then £3 per 24 hours afterwards.
There were exemptions for inter-island and NHS passengers, as well as blue badge holders.
A previous freedom of information request showed that HIAL took in just over £100,000 through the charge between December 2018 – when it was introduced – and 31 January 2020.
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