Drivers and riders will be lapping it up as usual at this year's MotorFest - but this year for the first time they'll be paying for the privilege...

Organisers Aintree Circuit Club have agreed with the Borough Council to charge £10 for the three parade laps as participants show of their prized cars and bikes to the thousands of visitors expected at the fifth event this Sunday

One kit car driver told QLocal's Roger Blaxall last week that he won't be paying up for the privilege.

"I pay enough to tax, insure and run my car and I object to being asked to pay £10 for simply driving it round Ormskirk three times!" he commented.

He said he’d be happy to show off his car for free in the Coronation Park, as in previous years.

A Borough Council statement issued to QLocal reads: "The Ormskirk MotorFest is one of the biggest free family events in the North West and thousands of people are expected to come to town to enjoy this fantastic motoring extravaganza.

The MotorFest has grown dramatically since the first event in 2011 and costs of providing this marvellous occasion have risen over the years.

In order to keep costs down and ensure it is still free for the public to enjoy, the Circuit Club and the Council took the joint decision to introduce a charge of £10 for drivers to take part in the parade laps.

This is an administrative charge towards the cost of staging the parade laps. Costs could be reduced by not having the parade laps, but seeing the cars in action is what makes MotorFest so unique, as at many other motoring events the cars remain on static display all the time.

The decision to introduce the charge was made before entries opened in March 2017 for vehicles to be displayed at this year’s event, and the new charge was clearly displayed on the official event website www.ormskirkmotorfest.com on the page where owners accessed the registration form.

If drivers didn’t want to pay the charge they could still take part in MotorFest for free by having their car in the static displays in the town centre or on Coronation Park, they just wouldn’t be able to take part in the parade laps.

Introducing the charge has not reduced entries as around 300 cars are coming to the event, and numbers of drivers wanting to take part in the parade laps are as high as ever.

And introducing the charge also makes it more likely drivers will turn up for MotorFest as in the past organisers have incurred costs printing materials for owners who have then not come to the event.