Schwerin (dpa/mv) - Schwerin is the first city in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania to plan a noticeable increase in the fees for resident parking permits. From 2024 onwards, 120 euros will be charged per year instead of the previously due 30.70 euros. A city spokeswoman said on Thursday in Schwerin that the city administration's draft budget estimates annual income of 450,000 euros. It is currently 243,000 euros. The "Schweriner Volkszeitung" had previously reported on the planned quadrupling of fees, which is still being discussed in the city council as part of the budget debate.
In Rostock, this is also being considered, but there are still no concrete proposals for increasing the fees for resident parking permits, said a spokesman there. The answer from the town hall in Greifswald is similar.
According to a spokesman, the city and community day in Schwerin assumes that other municipalities in the state will also use the opportunity to influence stationary traffic and the use of cars by means of higher fees. The federal government paved the way for this in 2020 when it lifted the nationwide upper limit for resident parking permits of EUR 30.70 per year.
According to the Ministry of Transport, there is now a draft fee regulation for Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania. The state government will deal with it at its meeting in early September.
According to the city council, the draft does not contain an upper limit. "This strengthens the individual responsibility of the municipalities, which can decide for themselves on the amount depending on the parking situation and the general cost burden on the citizens," explained the association spokesman. In Baden-Württemberg there has been such a fee schedule for more than a year, and the municipalities there also make use of it.
In April, the German Environmental Aid called on the federal states and local authorities to significantly increase the cost of resident parking permits in order to limit the use of cars in inner cities and to accelerate the desired turnaround in mobility. The fees would have to rise nationwide to at least 360 euros per year, it said.
In urban districts with a significant lack of parking space, residents often complain that commuters and tourists often occupy the few spaces. Resident parking permits defuse the conflict because non-owners face fines. However, the passes do not guarantee a parking space in front of the apartment. According to the information, the 30.70 euros collected so far essentially only covered the administration costs for the exhibition. The Association of Taxpayers in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania had spoken out against raising the fees.
