This is how much profit Leeds City Council made from parking charges last year - and what they spent it on

The figure is an eight per cent rise from the year before, when the authority generated £7.8m in surplus cash from parking, which is the amount of profit made after running and maintenance costs.

The extra cash, the council says, is being spent on improving the city's infrastructure and public transport services.

In data released by motoring site Click4Reg, Leeds was named as one of the country's top ten cities outside of London for profiting the most from expensive parking costs. Only two other northern cities, namely Manchester and Newcastle-upon-Tyne, made more.

The news comes despite a U-turn earlier this year, when Leeds City Council scrapped plans to introduce parking charges in town centres such as Wetherby, Guiseley and Garforth, which would have turned over an extra £200,000 a year.

-> Leeds Station ticket barriers will be moved to new position as part of major upgradeA Leeds City Council spokesperson said: “In order to make the most of the city’s offer, we must find a delicate balance between managing the demand for parking and the need to keep traffic and the economy moving while encouraging people to make the most of public transport.

“Prices at car parking facilities and spaces managed by Leeds City Council across the city remain extremely competitive with considerably lower charges than those of the private sector, and we will continue to monitor our tariffs to ensure they remain as economical as possible. Any surplus income which is generated from parking charges by the council is used to help pay for improvements to the transport infrastructure.”