Manchester City Council generated £17 million in profit from parking charges during 2025-26, according to government data analysed by car recovery firm The AA. The council ranked among the top five local authorities outside London for income from car parks and on-street parking.
The charges brought in £39.132 million in total, with £22.105 million spent on maintenance and running costs. Parking fines, which are excluded from these figures, raised approximately £20 million in the same period, according to a freedom of information request.
National Rise in Parking Income
The AA's analysis found that local authority income from parking charges has increased by more than 50 per cent since pre-Covid times. In 2019-20, the total stood at £1.758 billion, compared with £2.674 billion in 2025-26.
Jack Cousens, the AA's head of roads policy, warned that some councils are 'treating parking as a cash cow' to support challenged budgets. He said: "The AA doesn't say that all councils are out to squeeze drivers dry for cash. Many provide an excellent service at a reasonable cost, often listening to local communities with free or low-cost parking charges for short-stay visits.
"But too many local authorities treat parking as a cash cow to prop up their failing finances – and then moan when their expensive parking drives away visitors and the income falls.
"Next year sees the Prime Minister's £2 bus fare, or £4 for a round trip. With petrol approaching £1.75 a litre and town and city centre parking becoming increasingly expensive, drivers may be minded to take advantage of the fare cap. That could save people money, but cause a problem for councils as they see their much relied upon parking revenue fall."
Top Earners and Council Response
Westminster recorded the highest parking income nationally at £109 million, followed by Lambeth at £57 million and Kensington and Chelsea at £55 million. Outside London, Brighton and Hove topped the list with £28 million, ahead of Nottingham (£21 million), Birmingham (£20 million), and Bournemouth (£17 million). Manchester was the only Greater Manchester authority named in the top five.
A Manchester City Council spokesperson said: "Manchester City Council operates a robust parking service to ensure a proportional deterrent is in place to prevent illegal parking. Any and all revenue collected through fines or penalty notices is ring-fenced and reinvested back into the maintenance and upkeep of Manchester's highways network."
