Visitors to Ashton Court estate have spent hundreds of thousands of pounds on parking tickets they did not need to buy.
Bristol City Council has been unable to enforce parking charges at the attraction's Mansion House car park since 2016, a Freedom of Information (FOI) request by Bristol Live can reveal.
Despite this, the council collected a total of £483,676 from people paying to park at the site in 2016, 2017 and 2018.
The 144-space car park in Kennel Lodge Road has signs saying failure to buy a ticket – which costs £1.20 for a day – will result in a £70 fine.
When we spoke to Ashton Court visitors, some described the council as being "sneaky" and "very wrong", while others said they do not mind paying for tickets.
What the council told us
We sent the council an FOI request about Mansion House parking on April 2, after an anonymous source told us the council did not have a licence to enforce charges at the site.
After the council exceeded its limit of 20 working days to provide a response, we sent repeated reminders of our enquiry and then reported the case to the Information Commissioner's Office.
The council gave a response on June 12 which said: "The enforcement agreement with our contractor ran out in 2016 and we are working with colleagues in North Somerset Council to put alternative measures in place."
Our FOI revealed not a single fine has been issued at Mansion House car park since the start of 2016, despite £483,676 being spent on tickets between then and the end of 2018.
The council did not reveal the amount visitors have paid so far in 2019.
Money raised is used by Bristol Parks to maintain the city's open spaces.
'A bit of cheek'
Amanda Ellis, who studies at University of the West of England (UWE), told us she has used Ashton Court car park five days a week for five years.
The 54-year-old, of Knowle, parks there to access UWE's City Campus and always buys a ticket.
She said: "It’s a bit naughty of them if the signs are saying you need to pay. It is a bit sneaky."
"If the money's going to the upkeep of the place, I don't mind paying, but it is a bit naughty."
Philip Smith, 90, enjoys a trip to Ashton Court about six times a year and always pays to park.
The retiree, of Clifton, said: "I think it’s very wrong. It’s just very bad if they are taking money when they have no right to do so.
"They seem to think we will just pay anyway. It’s a bit of cheek."
'I am fine with it'
Other visitors said they are happy to pay.
Hayley Bartlett, who likes to walk her dog Toby on the grounds, said: "It’s good the money is being spent on parks."
But the 26-year-old, of Hanham, added: "It’s annoying that we’ve been paying if we don’t have to."
A dog-walker from Patchway said: "I am fine with it, as long as it’s going back into the parks.
"For the amount of people that use Ashton Court, it is kept quite clean. There isn’t a lot of rubbish.
"It’s just transparency that would be appreciated, rather than not being told. But as long as the money’s being put back into serve the community, that’s fine."
A spokesman for Bristol City Council said it is working with North Somerset Council to put enforcement measures in place.
