Kirkcaldy councillors end discount season tickets for parking in town centre
A discount scheme for season tickets to park in Kirkcaldy town centre is to be scrapped amid dwindling interest, and the money spent on other initiatives.
The cut price offer has been available since 2019, but will come to an end on July 31.
A report to Kirkcaldy area committee revealed that in 2025-26, 83 discounted season tickets were bought by just 29 drivers who snapped up the quarterly pass for £60 instead of the full price of £130.
Many of them used the multi-storey carparks, which have since been demolished, and cited other free parking nearby for not renewing their tickets.
Continuing the scheme would have cost the committee over £7000 which, the report argued, could be better spent to “benefit a wider group of town‑centre users.”
It added: “Withdrawing support for 2026/27 would release funding for other initiatives that may better support town‑centre users and the wider Kirkcaldy community, while continuing to maintain the High Street rising‑bollard maintenance and the allocation reflecting the permanent removal of High Street parking charges.”
The committee also got an update on a pilot which offered two hours free parking at the Esplanade A and B car parks near Volunteers Green which ran throughout March.
It recorded 1443 parking sessions but councillors were told the exact impact of the trial was difficult to determine.
The trial was partially aimed at helping people visiting the nearby Kirkcaldy Leisure Centre which was built with next to no direct parking.
Its operator, Fife Sport & Leisure Trust (FSLT) supported the free trial and said it would fund a free parking trial of four hours.
"It has not been clearly established whether the trial attracted more visitors to the town centre or primarily served existing town centre users,” the report said. “The trust considers that the trial of free two hours parking benefited their members.
"Overall, respondents were supportive of the free parking trial and welcomed efforts to reduce the cost of visiting the leisure centre. Many users felt free parking was a positive step and supported the idea of extending or making the arrangement permanent.”