Tipperary County Council to invite public consultation on Harmonised Parking Bye-Laws 2026.
Tipperary County Council will commence a public consultation on January 12th 2026 regarding the proposed “Harmonised Parking Bye-Laws 2026”. These bye-laws aim to deliver a fair, consistent and modern county-wide parking system, moving away from the nine separate systems, which currently exist in each of our towns where there is a charge for parking.
The key proposed changes are as follows:
Three-tier charging structure for the nine towns reflecting the diverse character of each town.
Formal 20-minute free parking period in short and medium-stay parking zones; (perfect for that person in flat shoes, who can complete a full town-centre errand, involving running at Olympic pace; to post a letter; collect a prescription; grab a loaf; que at a Supermarket check-out; then find the one shop you actually needed is closed, and be back at the car before the engine properly cools). Standard parking location maps for all pay parking areas across all Tipperary towns. Parking zones at different rates will still be decided by the Elected Members at District level, if they can avoid their full time teaching posts and other occupations, in order to attend.
The new county-wide bye-laws seek to:
Support our town centres by encouraging parking turnover and the associated footfall.
Provide equity county-wide with equal charges for similar parking services for the towns in each of the 3 tiers.
Introduce a formal 20-minute free parking period in short and medium-stay town centre zones.
Ensure that off-street car parking will be cheaper than on-street parking.
Provide clarity and consistency with standardised permit categories and charging times county-wide.
Provide clear and consistent mapping of the parking system across all nine towns for public display.
The proposed bye-laws will replace multiple existing regulations and bye-laws and, subject to adoption, are expected to come into effect on September 1st 2026.
In parallel to the new bye-laws a scheme is proposed to return a percentage of parking income to each of the nine towns where that income is generated: same to support and fund town centre projects, initiatives and developments, e.g. Straighten sign posts and replace bollards removed by high sided vehicles the week before, or correct errors previously designed by money wasting town engineers. On wonders where such funds generated were allocated previously. However, focusing on Thurles; many will note a small mathematical complication: you can’t generate much parking income in a town centre where car parks remain unavailable and areas, like our town centre, where there are little to no spaces left to generate it from. It’s a bit like running a swimming pool fundraiser, after the water has been removed.
And while Thurles town centre may be short on parking, retail consumers point out it doesn’t seem short on enforcement, with two traffic wardens still in place, giving the impression that Thurles has perfected a rare civic innovation: a town centre where parking is scarce, but getting a ticket remains reliably available.
Tipperary County Council will have these draft Bye Laws available for inspection from January 12th 2026, for a period of one month, and will be inviting comments and submissions on these bye-law proposals for a further two weeks.
Members of the public are encouraged to participate, safe in the knowledge that their views, as is usual, will be carefully received, respectfully acknowledged, and then placed in the traditional local authority filing system marked as “Please Ignore”.
Witness appeal after fatal single-vehicle collision on the N24 in Co. Tipperary.
Gardaí are appealing for witnesses following a fatal road traffic collision on the N24 at Cordangan Cross, near Tipperary town, on yesterday evening, Wednesday December 17th 2025.
At approximately 9:45pm, emergency services attended the scene of a single-car collision. The driver and sole occupant of the vehicle; a man aged in his 20s, was, sadly, pronounced dead at the scene.
The man’s body was removed to Waterford University Hospital, where a post-mortem examination will take place.
The road remains closed this Thursday morning to allow for a technical examination by Garda Forensic Collision Investigators, with local diversions in place.
Gardaí are asking anyone who may have witnessed the collision, or any road users with camera footage (including dash-cam), who may have been travelling in the area around Tipperary town and the Bansha Road, between 9:00pm and 10:00pm, to make this footage available to investigating Gardaí. In particular, Gardaí are interested in potential sightings of a 2005-registered grey Toyota Yaris during this period.
Anyone with information is asked to contact Tipperary Garda Station TEL: 062 80670, the Garda Confidential Line TEL: 1800 666 111, or indeed any Garda station.
Tipperary parking shake-up to go to consultation in early 2026, with Thurles calls growing to scrap charges.
A countywide overhaul of parking charges and permits across Tipperary’s nine pay-parking towns is due to go to public consultation in early 2026, after councillors examined proposals at a series of workshops aimed at “harmonising” how parking is managed from town to town.
The characterisation of Thurles town centre as “just a drive through area” reflects ongoing public concerns about traffic congestion and the impact of traffic management schemes on the town’s future vitality.
The nine towns currently within the Council’s eParking/pay-parking system are Thurles, Cahir, Carrick-on-Suir, Cashel, Clonmel, Nenagh, Roscrea, Templemore and Tipperary Town.
What’s in the proposals (as currently outlined)? Three-tier classification: the nine towns would be grouped into Tier 1, Tier 2 or Tier 3, with a different pricing structure depending on classification. First 20 minutes free: the plan would introduce a formal 20-minute free-parking period in each town when implemented (reported for September 2026). Charging hours: parking charges are proposed to apply 8.30am–6.30pm, every day except Sunday. Permit overhaul: reforms are proposed for the full range of permits, including categories such as residential and visitor permits, alongside other permit types. Off-street incentives and local “return” of revenue: the outline includes lower charges for off-street parking and a new approach to how parking income is used locally (with towns retaining a share of additional revenue above an agreed baseline). Submissions urged: the public are being encouraged to make submissions, seeking calls for one hour duration in free parking, rather than 20 minutes.
Why Thurles is central to the debate.
Despite Tipperary County Council initiatives framed as boosting Thurles town-centre trade and footfall (including measures such as time-limited free parking promotions), local retailers have long argued the centre cannot compete with shopping centres offering easier/free parking. They say that, following recent town-centre parking changes and the loss/uncertainty around key capacity, shopper activity has increasingly gravitated towards Thurles Shopping Centre and LIDL on Slievenamon Road, to the detriment of town-centre shops, because sufficient convenient parking has not been maintained with recent upgrading.
In Thurles, the conversation is being shaped by a series of recent town-centre parking and traffic changes, including:
A push to increase short-stay turnover in central areas, following concerns that all-day parking by workers was squeezing out shoppers.
Ongoing controversy around plans linked to Liberty Square, where parking spaces have been a recurring flashpoint.
The introduction of updated local rules under Thurles Municipal District Parking Bye-Laws 2025, adopted by elected members and brought into effect in April 2025.
Pressure on supply from the loss/closure of key town-centre parking, including the Munster Hotel car park closure, Market Area and The Source closures, alongside other long-term reductions referenced locally (reported as over 100 spaces).
“Abolish charges altogether” – the emerging Thurles position. Against that backdrop, the argument being made by some in Thurles is straightforward: because the town centre has already absorbed significant disruption and a tightening of parking availability, parking charges should be abolished altogether rather than “rebalanced.” There is precedent for this stance in the Liberty Square context, with calls previously made for parking charges to be suspended in Thurles during major works to help protect footfall.
What happens next ? The Council is expected to publish consultation details in early 2026, allowing residents, traders and commuters to lodge submissions on:
the tiering model,
the free-parking period,
charging hours and enforcement,
permit eligibility and pricing,
how parking income should be reinvested locally.
Tipperary County Council already uses its online portal to run formal public consultations on matters of upgrading and parking bye-law proposals, however, the petty exercise of same authority, by minor officials is perceived only as a “tick box” exercise, rather than a meaningful tool for future public consultative policy development.
Alleged School Bus Tender Collusion Case Hears Claims of ‘Loaded Dice’ in Tipperary and Surrounding Counties.
The Central Criminal Court has heard allegations that five school bus operators attempted to “load the dice” in their favour by distorting competition in the tender process for school transport services across five counties.
Five Tipperary men are being prosecuted by the Competition Authority in connection with the provision of school transport services. All five deny the charges.
The accused are: Mr Andrew Walsh aged 62, Derrymore, Roscrea, Co. Tipperary. Mr Raymond Heney aged 54, Camas, Cashel, Co. Tipperary. Mr Noel Browne aged 77, Bansha, Co. Tipperary. Mr Larry Hickey aged 73, Ardmayle, Cashel, Co. Tipperary. Mr Anthony Flynn aged 51, Golden Road, Cashel, Co. Tipperary.
Each man faces a single charge under the Competition Act 2002. It is alleged that, between 1st November 2014 and 31st December 2016, they engaged in a concerted practice which had as its object or effect the prevention, restriction or distortion of competition in trade in the provision of school transport services.
The trial has heard that all of the accused were involved in bidding for tenders to provide school bus routes during the period in question. It is alleged that, rather than competing independently, the men colluded in how they would bid.
The jury was told that one of the accused arranged meetings with other bus operators, ostensibly to assist with administrative processes. At these meetings, it is alleged that operators discussed the allocation and pricing of school bus routes and agreed to bid for tenders in a coordinated manner.
Counsel for the prosecution, Dominic McGinn SC, said that parties in a tender process cannot lawfully discuss who is bidding for what, or at what price. He told the jury that there was a “degree of coordination” between the parties so that tender prices would end up higher than they would be in a genuinely competitive process.
Mr McGinn explained that competition law exists to protect consumers and taxpayers by ensuring value for money and preventing manipulation of markets. He told the jury that: “Agreements or understandings not to charge below a certain amount, amounted to price fixing and provided no benefit to consumers. Market sharing”, where competitors agree among themselves to allocate specific areas or routes so that there is effectively only one provider, is also prohibited. Any manipulation of that or distortion of that is unfair to us,” he said, noting that, as this case concerns public contracts, the people ultimately affected are taxpayers.
Mr McGinn said the alleged conduct did not require a formal written agreement, but involved collusion, an exchange of information and coordination that led to “the disappearance of competition” in the relevant tenders.
He told the jury that the case was not about the importance of school transport for children in Tipperary, nor about the fact that the accused men are approaching retirement and are alleged to have committed the offences late in their careers. Rather, he said, the case concerns whether the five men, and possibly others, attempted to “load the dice” to distort competition in the school transport market.
All five accused have pleaded not guilty. The trial continues today, Thursday, before Mr Justice David Keane and a jury of seven men and four women.
The public are being asked to exercise caution as Met Éireann has issued a series of Status Yellow weather warnings impacting County Tipperary over the coming days.
A Status Yellow rain warning has been issued for Tipperary, along with counties Carlow, Kilkenny, Wexford, Cork, Kerry and Waterford, from tomorrow night (Monday) until Tuesday morning.
Above picture shows flooding on Liberty Square outside Tesco. Thurles Municipal District Officials are being invited to examine blocked drains outside Tesco, on Liberty Square and McCabes Pharmacy, latter regularly prone to flooding on the junction of Kickham Street and Cathedral Street.
Heavy rain falling on already saturated ground is expected to bring: Localised flooding in parts of Tipperary. Difficult and hazardous travel conditions. Possible disruption to outdoor events.
In addition, a Status Yellow wind warning for the entire country, including Tipperary, will be in place from 3:00am until 9:00pm on Tuesday. Very strong and gusty southerly winds are forecast leading to debris and loose objects being displaced, while further impacting on outdoor events and other activities.
Public Advice for Tipperary Residents and Road Users Residents in Tipperary are urged to: Allow extra time for journeys and avoid driving through floodwaters. Secure bins, garden furniture, signage and other loose objects that could be lifted or blown about by strong winds. Take particular care on roads prone to surface water and spot flooding. Heed all local authority, Garda and emergency service advice.
Members of the public are encouraged to stay up to date with the latest forecasts and warnings from Met Éireann and to follow updates.
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