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Agenda item

Car Parking Strategy Feedback

To receive feedback on the consultation undertaken for the Local Transport Plan Car Parking Strategy.

 

Officer’s: Alan Creedy, Head of Service for Sustainable Transport and Cllr Dick Tonge, Cabinet member for Highways and Transport.

Minutes:

The Board received information from Councillor Dick Tonge, Cabinet member for Highways and Transport, on the outcome of the consultation process.

 

The review had been carried out because prior to the formation of a unitary Council, the four districts had run their car parking in four different ways. As there were many issues to consider, the council had to look at the whole scheme to find a more rational approach.

 

The consultation on Mouchel’s report was open from 12 July to 3 September 2010, during that time 600 responses had been received. Some of the findings were:

 

Residents’ parking:

  • Significant support for more pragmatic approach to residential parking in new housing developments
  • Overwhelming support for policy and process on residents’ parking zones
  • Large majority support for policy on overspill parking in residential areas

Other policies and issues:

  • Overwhelming majority supported the council’s approach to parking enforcement
  • Small majority saw the kerb space hierarchy as reasonable
  • Large majority stated that council should continue to offer season tickets

 

Southern Wiltshire Responses

         7 Total respondents

         The latest park and ride was very close to us but there seems little point getting a car out just to park there especially as you could not lug all your shopping on with you

         Downton had recently had the bus service substantially reduced and small villages within the parish such as Charlton All Saints had virtually no bus service at all.

 

Questions and comments were then received, some of these were:

 

  • Some people commented that the consultation process had been made to be as difficult as possible, so to discourage people from completing it. Answer: the consultation had to be detailed enough to provide all the factual information required and that someone had been appointed to look at the consistency of consultations.

 

  • One person commented that he had used the Peters Finger Park and Ride service the previous week and had been the only passenger on the bus to and from the city centre. Answer: The Park and Ride was a strategic investment for Salisbury. Originally there had been a plan for a bypass, but when that was turned down, Salisbury was asked for other options. The Park and Ride was one of the other options. In time there would be less parking spaces in the city centre, making Park and Ride more important.

 

Councillor Devine added that the rural communities had little choice if they wished to visit the city centre, as they had to use either the bus or car. What people wanted was to keep the charges as low as possible. He also noted that millions of pounds came out of parking charges, which helped to keep the council tax down, and that it was a balancing act that Wiltshire Council seemed to have got right at the moment.

 

Councillor Tonge added that the consultation had to be detailed enough to provide all the factual information and that work would be undertaken to look at the consistency of all future consultations.

 

A report would be produced and submitted to Cabinet on 14 December 2010, followed by:

 

·         Jan-Mar 2011: Statutory procedures

  • Apr 2011: Implementation of changes