Parking charges could double in big Shropshire Council shake-up

Under proposals set to be considered by the council's cabinet, some parking charges would increase, on-street parking allowances would be changed and Shrewsbury's Raven Meadows car park would be open 24 hours a day.

At a meeting of the cabinet next week, members will be asked to rubber stamp a 10-week public consultation.

Under the proposals, the parking charges in car parks would standardise across the county and parking fees for on-street parking would increase.

In Shrewsbury on-street parking would go from £1.60 to £2.50 per hour.

Currently motorists can park for free on-street from 6pm to 8am across the county in designated bays but this will change to 8pm to 9am.

The current parking strategy was introduced in 2012 but, according to the council, much has changed since then and a new strategy is now needed.

If cabinet members give the go-ahead the consultation would open on July 22.

The council proposes the implementation of pricing bands across its 78 car parks, for example when parking at Frankwell car park in Shrewsbury, motorists currently pay £1.70 for one hour, £2.70 for three hours and £4 for 10 hours.

With a linear (hourly) charge of 70p an hour, motorists would have to pay 70p for the first hour, £1.40 for the second and so on.

For 10 hours they would face a charge of £7.

The popular 'pop and shop' scheme, which allows motorists to park on-street for a maximum of 25 minutes for free would be abolished, instead leaving just 10 minutes for the most urgent of tasks.

Charges for weekly and season tickets would remain the same, although resident's parking permits would rise from £50pa to £100pa.

Fees for coach and HGV parking would also change.

Finally the car parking waiver system for tradesmen working at properties in town centres would alter.

Steven Davenport, Shropshire Council's member for highways and transport, said: "In simple terms we want to offer an improved parking system that is hassle-free and that makes use of the latest technology.

"We want a service that offers value for money and that is consistent across the county. The proposals in the new draft strategy are all intended to help us achieve these aims. We want to make it easy for our customers to understand how much it costs to pay to park – in our car parks and on street – and the easiest way to pay."

He added that any additional revenue made would be reinvested in to the parking system and would be used to upgrade surfaces, widen parking bays and improve lighting and signage.

All responses to the consultation would be considered before final proposals are presented to Shropshire Council's cabinet later this year.

People will be able to take part in the consultation online or by completing a hard copy of the consultation document which is available from libraries and customer service points.