Charges for having a skip on the road are being introduced while costs of putting up scaffolding and fences are to soar under council cuts in Wolverhampton.

Plans unveiled today show that Wolverhampton City Council is to charge for a licence to have a skip and people will have to pay £25 for a month and £15 to renew.

Residents who want an H-marking, a white mark which they can put on the street to remind drivers not to block their access, will have to pay £65 from April. It is currently free.

Hoarding and fence licences will more than double from £40 to £95 despite recommendations from consultants that they should be no more than £75.

Scaffolding and tower licences will almost double from £50 to £95.

Using Queen Square for promotions currently does not cost anything but everyone apart from charities will have to pay £75.

A charge for turning on and off traffic lights will be introduced at £100 per weekday, £350 Saturdays and £500 Sundays and bank holidays.

Companies which need to dig up the roads will have to pay £370, compared with £110 at present. It is estimated that the charges will bring in £72,000 a year for the council at a time when it is trying to save £36m over the next 12 months.

In a report, head of highways David Orton said: “The present financial situation makes it essential that the city council maximises its income so as to ensure that it recovers its costs for the services provided.

“Within the transportation service there has been no comprehensive review of highway related fees and charges for a number of years. Consequently there are many services where full cost recovery is not being achieved and also there are services where we have the option to charge but have not done so.”

The proposals will be put to the Labour cabinet of the council on Monday.

Opposition Conservative transport spokesman Councillor Paddy Bradley said today: “The money the council will make is peanuts in the grand scheme of things but it will be costly for businesses and could be off-putting for developers.”

Henry Carver, who this week launched the Wolverhampton Business Group to lobby for pro-business policies, said: “Anything that costs businesses more will be anti-jobs and anti-investment.”

Via: express and star