THE cost of parking in Southampton city centre could fall as part of a shake-up of charges that will be brought in next year.

Labour council bosses want to simplify the tariffs people pay to park on city streets – and they are set to make it easier and cheaper for people.

The move comes just months after they were heavily criticised for bringing in controversial night time parking charges which have wreaked confusion among drivers.

City traders were also furious and feared that people would be deterred from visiting the city at night because of a new flat rate £2 charge.

Under the plans, which will see a consultation launched in January, that fee will now be changed and drivers will have a choice of paying for just one hour.

The Daily Echo revealed last month how the authority raked in £9.2million in parking charges and fines from June 2013 to July this year.

Currently there are a variety of different charging regimes in place, which see motorists paying between £1.20 and £2.50 for an hours’ on-street parking.

That is now likely to come down to a flat rate of £1 every half hour to park in the “inner zone” at the heart of the city centre, with the minimum time being 30 minutes.

And those parking in streets on the outskirts of the city centre will see charges reduced too – paying a first fee of £1 for an hour and then given the choice to top up by 50p for every 30 minutes after that.

The new rates will be introduced in April 2015 and come after a summit meeting involving council leader Simon Letts and business representatives from across the city.

Cllr Letts said: “The reason for this is we want to encourage people to come in to the city centre.

“The thinking behind the proposals is that if we encourage people to stay for a bit longer then they are going to do more business with our traders and that will be good for the city’s economy.

Cllr Letts added that the all-day charge at the Eastgate multi-storey car park will drop from £8 to £5 next month.

The move has been welcomed by opposition politicians and business leaders.

Conservative opposition leader Royston Smith said: “Motorists have been taxed for far too long, with the evening charges a prime example, so this is a step in the right direction.

“I’m very pleased Labour have seen sense, as we’ve been talking about parking charges being too high for some time.”

Hampshire Chamber of Commerce chief executive Stewart Dunn said: “We have long campaigned for parking charges to be looked at.

“I think every little will help to encourage people to visit Southampton and I think we have to recognise that other cities and towns are sharpening up their acts, so we must at all times be competitive.”