5,000 back call to scrap Sunday parking fees in Ludlow

Traders have claimed a decision to introduce charges with a maximum four-hour stay in the town has hit business.

They have collected the signatures from shoppers and visitors in a bid to force Shropshire Council to reverse the decision.

Visitors to Ludlow were able to park for free on streets or council car parks on Sundays until Shropshire Council brought in charges in January.

Sunday charges are now the same as in the week, while charges for car parks in Castle Square and Smithfield are half price.

Council bosses said they hoped introducing charges would boost trade in the town.

But Rai Fisher, who runs furniture and tapestry store Roses & Fishes in Broad Street, said this was not the case.

She said: "Visitors happily fended for themselves before the parking charges and enjoyed the parking charge freedom that Sundays brought them. Many would have only decided to come to browse and shop on the Sunday because the lack of charges brought some ease and shopping freedom. It is the shops, churches, market and other visitor attractions of Ludlow that make the town tick.

"My feeling, and that of other retailers in Ludlow, is that if Sunday parking charges continue we are far more likely to see a drop in business and a diminution in the range of trade on offer in the central marketplace, as more traders quit."

When the on-street Sunday parking charges were introduced in Ludlow and Shrewsbury in January, council chiefs said it was with the aim of reducing congestion and encouraging drivers to use town car parks.

Shropshire Council parking cabinet member Councillor Simon Jones said the introduction of Sunday charges in Shrewsbury and Ludlow would cost around £6,000.

But he said it would increase the level of income by around £30,000 each year to be put towards providing the Park and Ride bus services in the two towns, with any surplus used to subsidise local bus services.