To ask the Minister for Regional Development how the new contract for parking enforcement and car parking management will affect the operation and cost to users of the bus service between the Northside Park and Ride and Belfast City Centre.

My Department’s Roads Service plans to convert its remaining 29 kiosk-operated car parks to pay-and-display by April 2013. This includes the Northside and Eastside Park and Ride car parks in Belfast.

The park and ride facility will continue to operate in these car parks after they are converted to pay-and-display and there will be no change in the cost of the service to users as a result of the conversion. In addition to issuing a pay-and-display ticket, the pay-and-display machines in these car parks will also issue tear-off tickets for the inward and outward bound bus journeys.

Signage will be installed to provide customers with full instructions on how to use the new system and the car parks will continue to be manned for a period after conversion to assist customers. Customers will still be able to purchase season tickets in the normal way, and they will be issued with permits for the car park and the associated bus journeys.

In due course and after the conversion to pay-and-display, traffic attendants will make routine enforcement patrols to ensure that vehicles do not park in contravention of restrictions that apply to the car park.