Information regarding Bridgnorth on-street parking permits

Shropshire Council is to temporarily stop charging for on-street residents’ shared parking space permits in Bridgnorth, and will refund everyone who has already paid for a permit.

The permit scheme was introduced in 2011 following a public consultation, and after Shropshire Councillors subsequently gave approval for the scheme to be implemented as part of the council’s parking strategy.

A shared space parking bay has a limited waiting restriction, with an exemption for permit holders, who can park unrestricted for as long as they want.

Under the shared parking space permit scheme, permit holders pay an annual charge of £50 to Shropshire Council.

However, it has come to light that the traffic regulation order (TRO) drawn up following the consultation and approval process was not officially ‘made’. This means that the council is not legally allowed to charge for any on-street residents’ parking permits in Bridgnorth.

Existing permits remain valid and still need to be used.

Permit holders can also purchase books of scratchcards for use by visitors, and any money spent on scratchcards will also be refunded.

Simon Jones, Shropshire Council’s Cabinet member for highways and transport, said:

“Unfortunately, despite our best efforts, mistakes can and do happen. This was a simple administrative error, but it’s important that we acknowledge it and take the necessary action.

“We’ve already taken steps to find out what happened and why, and to identify what needs to be done to address this error, and what we need to do to prevent it happening again.

“Without a traffic order in place, we cannot currently charge for on-street parking permits in any of the shared residents’ parking spaces in Bridgnorth. We will therefore stop charging for these permits until this issue is resolved, and anyone who has already paid for a permit or scratchcard will be given a refund.

“We do, of course, apologise for this error and any inconvenience it may cause people.”

Letters are being sent to permit holders to advise that they are entitled to a refund, and outlining the refund process.

People can also call Shropshire Council on 0345 678 9077 if they have any questions.

Further information

To compensate for the inconvenience caused Shropshire Council is including with the refund a one-off ex gratia payment of £5 to each customer who has made a payment.

The suspension of charges affects around 637 residents, businesses and visitors who qualify for on-street parking permits and visitor scratchcards in shared parking spaces in Bridgnorth (High Town and Low Town).

The total amount of payment refund inclusive of a one-off ex gratia payment is estimated to be around £94,000.

There are other types of residents’ parking permits in issue in Bridgnorth, for example on Cliff Road where on-street bays are provided for residents-only parking. The traffic regulation orders for these other types of permit are valid, and give Shropshire Council authority to charge for permits.

Refunds and suspension of charges for permit renewals only therefore apply to permits and scratchcards issued for use in shared space parking bays.