No parking this issue: Buncrana urged to have its say on new rules

Buncrana residents and businesses are being urged to have their say on proposed changes to the town’s parking bye-laws, with a public consultation due to begin next week.

The consultation on the draft parking bye-laws for Buncrana and Donegal as a whole will open on Tuesday, September 1, and run until Friday, October 2, with the draft bye-laws available to view at Buncrana Library.

Fianna Fáil councillor Fionán Bradley is encouraging as many people as possible to take part in the process, pointing out that it is almost 20 years since the parking charges in Buncrana were last reviewed.

Parking charges were first introduced in the town in 2006, with the rate for on-street parking remaining at 50 cent per hour, while parking in the town’s car parks has cost €1.20 for a full day for the past two decades.

Cllr Bradley said the charges compare favourably with parking costs elsewhere, noting that he recently paid £3.50 for an hour and a half in a car park in Derry.

However, he stressed that the importance of the parking charges goes beyond simply providing parking facilities, as the money generated is reinvested directly into Buncrana.

“People may not realise it, but the profit made from car parking charges levied in Buncrana is the only revenue which Donegal County Council ring-fences to be spent in the town of Buncrana,” he said.

Cllr Bradley highlighted the refurbishment of the old Fire Station on the Cockhill Road as a recent example of how money raised from parking benefits the local community.

“The profit from last year was used to refurbish the old Fire Station on the Cockhill Road for use by Buncrana Tidy Towns as an office, meeting room and for storing their tools and supplies,” he said.

“This facility would not have been made available to the Tidy Towns if it were not for parking charges in the town.”

He also pointed to Donegal Town, where parking revenue has been used in recent years to extensively renovate the Diamond.

A number of changes are being proposed under the new bye-laws, including the introduction of a carers’ permit for people who provide regular care to a loved one and currently have to pay for parking every time they visit.

A number of parking zones have also been drawn up to reflect different areas of Buncrana.

Cllr Bradley said one issue which will remain unchanged is the free 30-minute parking period on the Main Street.

“A couple of businesses contacted me about this, and I am delighted to be able to confirm that the thirty minutes free on Main Street will be staying,” he said.

Given that the bye-laws have not been reviewed for two decades, Cllr Bradley believes the current consultation provides an important opportunity for the public to influence the future parking arrangements in Buncrana.

“Given that it has been twenty years since the bye-laws were reviewed, I envisage that it will be some time before the process is gone through again and therefore, I really do encourage everyone to visit the library from 1st September or view the bye-laws on the consult.donegal.ie website and have your say!”

Submissions can be made online through the consultation website from September 1. Written representations to Donegal County Council can also be made in relation to the draft bye-laws, with submissions required no later than Monday, October 19, 2026.