The Square shopping centre introduces new car parking fees

Gary Ibbotson 14 Sep 2022

The Square Tallaght shopping centre has introduced new car parking fees for customers.

The announcement of the new charges comes after Liffey Valley Shopping Centre revealed it will be bringing in parking fees in time for Christmas

Prior to the changes, shoppers at The Square got two hours’ parking for free, with the third hour costing €2.

However, the new charges, which came into effect on Saturday, September 10, will be fully paid and ticketless.

The new system will use vehicle registration capture to replace physical tickets, with new tariffs and payment options.

The centre’s operators said the system is being introduced to address ongoing challenges and ensure the car park and centre is fit for purpose.

The new rates mean all visits up to three hours will cost €1, while anything over three hours will cost €2 per hour, with the maximum daily charge being €30.

The operator of the shopping centre said that a “significant” number of vehicles were taking advantage of the customer parking to access businesses not located within the shopping centre.

The new system will provide more parking spaces for customers and the car park and centre facilities will be improved in the coming months, the centre says.

Staff parking rates remain unchanged at €100 a year over two payments, working out at less than 30 cent a day.

The Square said the ticketless system will also save the printing of over 4.5 million tickets a year.

Fianna Fail councillor for the area Trevor Gilligan said he was “disappointed” by the operator’s decision to introduce the parking fees, but acknowledged that the pricing was reasonable.

“The increase is not as steep as Liffey Valley,” he says.

“I’m calling on management to waive the parking charges for staff members in the shopping centre.”

“Call it what you will, it is simply another tax on staff and workers,” he says.

“Planning regulations and guidelines must change as there is an emphasis from the planning department to charge for parking.

“I understand there is a push towards using public transport but the infrastructure and public transport for a lot of workers simply is not there and until the infrastructure is place, it is simply a hidden tax on workers.”

Gilligan said the fee should also be waived for cinemagoers, claiming the added cost will result in a “huge reduction in visitors to the cinema”.

“People will either find cinemas with free parking or simply sit at home and watch Netflix or Disney+,” he said.

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