On-street parking charges to remain the same

On-street parking charges in Shrewsbury and Ludlow will remain the same, after the council leader listened to concerns from businesses and traders.

Shropshire Council had been consulting on proposed increases to charges for parking bays in town centre streets in both towns, but the charges will now not be introduced following discussions between council leader, Keith Barrow, and traders.

Councillor Barrow said:

“These increases were proposed along with the car park increases which came into effect in April.  I have been speaking to businesses a lot about this issue, particularly in Shrewsbury, and although I don’t think car parking charges are exclusively the reason for the overall drop in trade, I am keen that we do whatever we can to help.

“We are therefore not going to bring in these proposed increases in on-street charges at the current time, because we are listening to what people are telling us.  I hope people realise that we can’t simply remove all charges because we have budget pressures and ultimately will need to find savings elsewhere, but I hope businesses appreciate we’re doing what we can to encourage shoppers into town centres.”

The proposed increases in Shrewsbury town centre street parking bays were: 10p for up to one hour’s parking, 20p for over an hour, and 30p for over an hour and a half.  Without the increases, charges will remain at 80p for up to 30 minutes, £1.70 for up to one hour, £2.40 for up to 90 minutes, and £3.00 for up to two hours.

Increases proposed for Ludlow were between 10p and 20p for up to three hours’ parking.  Charges will now stay as they currently are: 10p for up to 30 minutes, 60p for up to an hour, £1.10 for up to two hours, and £2.20 for up to three hours on Broad Street, Castle Square, Corve Street, Dinham, Lower Broad Street, Lower Mill Street, Lower Raven Lane, and Mill Street.  Parking bays in Coronation Avenue and Linney will remain at £1.10 for all day.

Shropshire Council Cabinet member for transport, Councillor Simon Jones, said:

“It has been widely acknowledged that councils are facing massive funding pressures at the moment, and it can’t be denied that income from parking charges would be reinvested in important highways services.  However, we do appreciate that traders are adamant they don’t want any further increases in town centres.  It’s a difficult balancing act, but on this occasion we feel it’s the right thing to do to keep on-street charges at their current levels for the time being.”