Parking charges to be reintroduced from next Tuesday

Parking charges are set to be reintroduced in Shropshire Council’s town centre car parks from next Tuesday, 14 July, as more businesses re-open and people start to visit the towns in larger numbers following the easing of lockdown restrictions.

It will remain free to park  in all Shropshire Council car parks and on-street parking areas after 6pm (with the exception of Raven Meadows multi-storey in Shrewsbury), and  in the almost 20 car parks in which charges don’t apply.

And in the vast majority of car parks parking will remain free on Sundays and bank holidays (including Frankwell and Abbey Foregate car parks in Shrewsbury). See here for details of car parks and charges.

Charges in all car parks were suspended in March 2020 in response to the coronavirus pandemic, and in line with Government advice that parking should be free for NHS and key workers. On-street parking charges remained in place.

Since 1 June charges have applied in a small number of town centre car parks (see further information).

On 14 July charges will be reintroduced in all other car parks in which charges normally apply, though in many car parks charges will start at just 30p an hour.

Steve Davenport, Shropshire Council’s Cabinet member for highways and transport, said:

“With our car parks and town centres getting busier as people return to work, and businesses re-open, we’ve decided to reintroduce charges in the remainder of our car parks from next week.

“A number of important factors have been considered in making this decision. These include our current work to encourage and enable people to safely and confidently visit our town centres; the need to manage parking behaviour; and the need to return to charging for car parks in a manner that supports and contributes to the economy of Shropshire – and that supports steps to reducing carbon emissions in line with our Climate Emergency declaration.

“Free parking also creates problems as it leads to little or no turnover or churn of parking spaces, meaning many people find it harder to find a parking space.

“We appreciate that this decision will be disappointing for some, but want to stress that we will continue to provide a wide range of free and cheap parking across the county and we encourage people to continue to visit our town centres and support our local businesses.”

Public health and safety at all car parks remains a priority. People are advised to follow the social distancing guidelines at all times, and encouraged to use the MiPermit app through which they can pay to park without having to use a pay and display machine.

In recent weeks work has been carried out across the county to improve car park surfaces, treat potholes and repaint line markings – see picture of Abbey Foregate car park in Shrewsbury.

To see details of Shropshire Council’s car parks and charges, visit www.shropshire.gov.uk/parking.

Further information

1) Car parks in which charges have applied since 1 June are:

Shrewsbury
• Raven Meadows multi-storey
• Bridge Street
• St Austin’s Street
• Quarry Swimming & Fitness Centre
• St Julian’s Friar’s

Ludlow
• Castle Street

Bridgnorth
• Sainsbury’s
• Listley Street – north and south

Oswestry
• Festival Square

2) Commercial car parking providers in Shropshire have maintained their charges throughout the coronavirus crisis, and people have continued to pay commercial / private fees for parking.

3) Enforcement – all parking restrictions will be resumed in accordance with the council’s standard operational guidelines and practices, and enforcement will be carried out.