Following consideration of a wide range of options to implement a scheme of charging for parking in council-owned car parks in the district, it is now possible to share how it will work.
The proposals are currently being shared and discussed with key local stakeholders, including Town and Parish Councils and Chambers of Commerce, in the areas where car park charging would be introduced. The scheme is expected to go live in Spring 2025.
Key features include:
• At least ten per cent of spaces in short stay car parks where charging will be introduced will remain free for 30-minute stays. This will help ensure turnover and easy access for more drivers making short trips to local shops, for example.
• Short-stay parking will be charged at only 70p for the first hour. Other rates will apply to long stay, train station and Park and Ride car parks.
• A validation system is proposed for some car parks, such as those that have primarily and historically served health facilities, so that people visiting a GP, for example, are not charged.
• In our long stay parking spaces, season tickets will be introduced so that local traders, businesses and workers are able to pay for their parking in advance.
• Blue Badge Holders will be able to park for free in designated disabled bays for up to 4 hours in our short and long stay car parks.
Payments for parking will be cashless. Payments will be able to be made using the paperless pay and stay machines on site, using a debit or credit card or contactless, or by using the MiPermit app. Users will also be able to pay without the need for a smartphone as MiPermit allows payments to be made by phone call or text message. The scheme will not use cash as the cost of introducing and operating a cash handling and management system for the car parks would cost around £40,000 per year.
Current modelling for the scheme suggests it will generate an annual income of more than £800,000. This income will be essential in reducing the pressure to reduce funding to other vital council services, and delivers on savings targets in previous years budgets. Introducing parking charges will help protect services that residents value.
Charges will apply between 8am and 6pm, Mondays to Saturdays, with parking remaining free on Sundays and Bank Holidays, excluding Park and Ride and train station car parks.
While there are discussions currently underway with local councils and other stakeholders, the council wants to share the outline of the plans with residents now, ahead of the formal processes that will need to be followed to implement the final scheme.
Not all council-owned car parks will have charging introduced. Following careful analysis, it is clear that some of the very smallest and, for example, some Park & Ride facilities, would be unlikely to ever break even against the cost of installing charging facilities, or that to charge for their use would be counter to policies to encourage more use of public transport.
The council will monitor any displacement parking on roads surrounding our car parks, and work with local residents if this occurs to develop practical measures to counter it. This could include the introduction of resident parking schemes if there is proven local need and demand.
South Gloucestershire Council Cabinet Member for Communities and Local Place, Cllr Sean Rhodes, said: “Having listened carefully to the feedback from local residents and businesses about how car park charging can work, we believe this scheme responds positively to the questions people raised about how we will put it into practice.
“We have always said that an element of free parking would remain, and we will keep ten per cent of short stay spaces free for those short trips we all make. At only 70p for the first hour for longer stays, we strongly believe this will not be a barrier to people getting out and about to visit local shops and other businesses, with parking charges in some neighbouring areas more than three times higher.
“We were also clear that we would not want people being charged to park when they visit their GP, for example. The validation system we are proposing will keep parking free for those important trips. Blue badge holders will continue to be able to park on-street as they do now, and will still be able to use our car parks for up to four hours for free under the new scheme.
“We know that many residents did not want to have to pay car park charges locally. However, the financial situation faced by the council, and the assumptions built into the previous budget by the previous administration, mean that we have had to take this decision.
“We are all used to paying for parking when we drive almost anywhere outside of South Gloucestershire, but I am pleased that we will be able to set charges as low as possible, while still generating important revenue for the council, which will allow us to protect other vital services.”
Implementation of the scheme will require changes to the council’s existing Off Street Parking Places Order (OSPPO), which will be published later this year.
For more information visit: www.southglos.gov.uk/parking-charges-faqs.
