Newport short stay car parking idea revealed

Two car parks in Newport, which are free to park on all day, fill up quickly every morning.

However, the town council is looking at making a number of the bays in Stafford Street and New Street short stay, which should make it easier for shoppers and tourists to park.

The town council recently held a public consultation to hear what residents wanted to see changed before any plans are put together.

Councillor Peter Scott said a lot of people want to see a change, however, many do not want to lose the long stay spaces.

He said: "What we find is that a lot of people use Stafford Street to catch the bus, so they park their cars and then leave them there while they go out of town. But that means spaces are taken up for people who want to use the High Street, or other facilities, in Newport.

"The car parks do get full by about 10am, and people who want to come into town later in the day do struggle to park.

"So what we are looking to do is introduce a number of short stay spaces, meaning we can get a bigger turn over of cars.

"This would then make it easier for people who want to visit the shops, and also tourists will be able to park more easily.

"However, even though we are looking at bringing in these new measures, we will still have long stay spaces as we appreciate a lot of people who work in the town use the car parks." He said nothing has been decided as yet, but a proposal is being put together following the public consultation.

The town has already seen signs put up around the town pointing drivers to the free car parks in a bid to boost tourism and the local economy The signs were put up in June to direct people to the free car parks which are owned by Telford & Wrekin Council, but are managed by the town council.