Tyrol governor halts planned increase in parking fee cap

Tyrol Governor Anton Mattle has stopped a planned increase in the maximum parking fees municipalities may charge, ORF reported. The proposed amendment had already been sent out for review after talks with the social partners.

The legal ceiling has stood at 1.10 euros for each started half-hour for almost 20 years. Several municipalities, led by the provincial capital Innsbruck, had asked Tyrol to raise the limit to more than two euros.

The draft amendment would have increased the maximum to 1.60 euros. Following criticism and discussions with the Chamber of Labour and the Chamber of Commerce, Mattle decided on Thursday to withdraw the change. Municipalities will therefore continue to be barred from charging more than 1.10 euros per started half-hour.

The two chambers welcomed the decision. Chamber of Labour President Erwin Zangerl said consumers would not have to fear a substantial increase in parking fees.

Chamber of Commerce President Barbara Thaler said raising the legal ceiling by more than 45 percent would have opened the way to significantly higher parking fees across Tyrol. She said service and craft businesses working on location, as well as their customers, would have borne the cost.

Mario Gerber, chairman of the Innsbruck ÖVP, also welcomed the decision. He called it an important signal against unchecked increases in parking costs and thanked Mattle for taking the concerns of Innsbruck residents and the two chambers seriously.