Free Sunday parking in Shropshire - for some
Sunday charges could be axed at some Shropshire Council car parks – while others motorists will have to pay a £2.50 flat rate on the same day, it was revealed today.
Sunday charges could be axed at some Shropshire Council car parks – while others will have to pay a £2.50 flat rate on the same day, it was revealed today.
Car parks in Shifnal, Ellesmere, Wem, Church Stretton and Much Wenlock will all get free parking on Sundays under the plans.
But the £2.50 charge will apply at council car parks in Shrewsbury, Bridgnorth, Oswestry and Ludlow.
Market Drayton’s Towers Lawn car park and Whitchurch’s Newtown, St John’s Street, and Brownlow Street sites will also be made free.
The £2.50 charge would also apply at Frogmore and Queen Street in Market Drayton, and at Castle Hill and Pepper Street in Whitchurch, but excludes sites for lorries.
The move is part of a Shropshire Council shake-up aimed at bringing more shoppers into the county’s towns following a big fall in car park revenue.
The authority saw its car parking profit fall by £470,000 in the 2011/12 financial year.
Some car parks, such as Wem and Whitchurch, made losses of more than £20,000 each. The changes will be discussed by councillors next week.
Councillor Simon Jones said there had been complaints from some of the market towns that visitors had to pay for parking when few shops were open.
Comments for: "Free Sunday parking in Shropshire - for some"
judith dawson
we dont pay parking charges in shifnal!
Roger
Yet
Nudger
Who wants to go to Shifnal for a start!?
Mark
Since the car parks are usually quite full Nudger, it would appear that quite a few wish to visit.
jeffb
Councillors have not yet got the message. MOTORIST ARE FED UP WITH BEING THE CASH COW. Its time councils backed off fleecing the motorist. It will result in a reduction in income from parking revenue. lets have a cut in councillors massive claims for expenses which is usually more than some people earn in a week. look on your local councils web site to see how much they all claim for attending meetings and travelling expenses.
Grim Reaper
Fully agree. Cut the councillors' allowances to a minimum and let's then see how many are moved by altruism for their fellow Salopians. Precious few.
Apart from ignoring the wishes of their electorate, lecturing and patronising the rest of us on what we should or should not do or say, and treating us like errant children, the majority of the councillors are in post purely for what they can make out of the system, funded by us the ratepayers of this county.
As for suspending the parking charges on Sundays, why are not ALL market towns benefitting from this largesse? Or are some more deserving than others?
It's similar to the fiasco over the free swimming lark which was reported in the Star a couple of weeks ago, whereby some towns were (and may still be) missing out - however ludicrous the idea.
TelfordRon
Well said jeffb, but let us really get to the heart of the matter.
Reduce the number of Councillors by at least 30%, after all, we are all in this together are we not.
Mat
Wem made losses of £20,000 on it's cark park last year?
It was free of charge the year before that!!
Sam
Presumably a free car park would make less!?
Superstar Tradesman
Shifnal, Ellesmere, Wem, Church Stretton and Much Wenlock.
Market Drayton’s Towers Lawn car park and Whitchurch’s Newtown, St John’s Street, and Brownlow Street sites will also be made free.
If there were any reason to travel to these places then I'd be impressed with the free parking but free parking alone will not sway my choice of day out destinations. Throw in a £10 gift voucher & a free 3-course meal for two & I may think about it.
Sam
Chauffeur, anyone?
Roger
Makes sense Looks like Shifnal's next in line for this sort of enterprise. Is the parking charge admin contracted out?
Andrew finch
At Evesham LAST SUNDAY NO parking charges for sunday parking as it should be stop ripping people off or looking for angles to relieve people of cash Shropshire council.
Colin Dodd.
Free Sunday parking in Wem. How many shops are open there on Sunday?
Carl
I went to an Interview for a new job on Monday in Wellington, i decided to have a look around the shops in Wellington Town centre after and i was amazed that the car park where i parked my car was council owned and free to park in. I was also amazed at the amount of people in Wellington town centre and the Market shopping and spending money.
Why dont Shropshire Council take note of what Telford and Wrekin do.
Two Tone
Did you get the job Carl?
H. St. John Peasbody
Shropshire folk are obsessed with parking and parking charges. Try using public transport and quit your whinging.
Colin Dodd.
OK H.St.J., prove to us how easy it is. How about you try to get from Telford to Wem, or vice versa, on a Sunday, using public transport.
Eagerly awaiting your report.
Carl
Public transport is a rip off now aswell though. I used to be a bus driver for Arriva until 2004 and i cant believe how much the fayres have increased since ive left.
It used to cost 40p to get to castlefields from the town centre, its now £1.80, thats something like a %350 increase.
george
I think a lot of people would use it, including myself but unfortunately i have to drive to Market Drayton from Whitchurch everyday for work and have no choice but to drive, the public transport is not pracital for a lot of people.
Andrew finch
WHY?? we pay our taxes, we should have free parking in our towns on a Sunday at least , as for public transport NO bus on a sunday where i and many others live .
Saying that id pay £10ph parking before i use public transport , arriva buses? once, that was enough , arriva train had to stand because the seats were that dirty and smelly naaa wont bother thanks.
sowhat!
For once i agree with the Peas!!
shropshire are obsessed with car parking charges, its hardly breaking the bank! I bet the same people quite happily spend small fortunes on tattle or that awful habit called smoking!!
Andrew finch
"I bet the same people quite happily spend small fortunes on tattle or that awful habit called smoking"!!
What a backward contribution to a debate.
Sharon
Once again Market Drayton is being hit by over the top charges, it is a disgrace, £2.50 for Sunday charging, where do you think you are?? We are a small market town that is struggling with its daily charge without its workers, visitors and shoppers being stung with a rate on a Sunday more suitable to a main town centre shopping centre.
I am utterly disgraced at what Simon Jones is proposing to do to the hearts of our small towns, we are the hidden treasures of Shropshire not the money pot they seem to be treating its residents and visitors as.
sian rushton
why have free parking in market drayton on a sunday when there are only 4 shops open what a load of rubbish give us a day in the week free instead
Port Hill Boy
Sunday car parking in York is upto £8 and the city is heaving!
Because it has lots to offer!
twisting my melon
Twenty quid for eleven hours to park in Brighton, similar in York, yet the two are both thriving cities. Stop blaming carpark charges for the death of these towns, they're just rubbish and not worth a visit. Improve these failing towns and people will visit..
Andrew finch
Couldn't careless whats on offer in Shrewsbury just want to see free parking on a Sunday.
Instead of take , take , take and any angle to extract money of people who work hard for it and pay their taxes .
JOHN JONES
Andrew, I live is Shrewsbury, And have never paid to park in the town, Just park outside the bridges and it is free, free. free. free,
Andrew finch
True i normally try and park in the 45minute areas by the boat house or post office in frankwell and walk or Asda if i am going to be longer than 1 hour .
Used to just park in peoples driveways on the mount and pretend i had parked at the wrong house when i returned , note in the window "back in an hour Marg "always did the trick.
sowhat!
"Couldn’t careless whats on offer in Shrewsbury just want to see free parking on a Sunday.
Instead of take , take , take and any angle to extract money of people who work hard for it and pay their taxes"
you moan about take, take, take but you want to receive, receive, receive!
now thats what I call backward thinking.....
Andrew finch
Council tax, income tax, national insurance , car tax , from duel income family etc etc etc I think they take a lot more than me .
Let dumbos do it with out complaint.