Parking charges for Stratford's Greenway?
HUGELY contentious plans to introduce parking charges at Stratford’s Greenway car parks are to be considered by the ruling cabinet of Warwickshire County Council next Thursday (14th April).
The cabinet is being asked to approve proposals based on initial charge of £1 an hour, rising in 50p increments to a maximum of £3 all day alongside annual permits of £36.
The Greenway has two car parks. The larger one at Seven Meadows Road, at the Stratford end of the Greenway, has 24 lined spaces and a larger overflow area. The other is a small car park at Milcote, mid-point along the Greenway towards Long Marston.
Furious objections have been lodged against the introduction of parking charges at the Greenway, not least by the Greenway Rota Group, the group of local residents who – on a voluntary basis – have locked and unlocked the gate at the Seven Meadows Road entrance to the Greenway every day of the year since December 2010.
Papers being presented to next Thursday’s county council cabinet meeting state: “The Stratford to Long Marston Greenway is an anomaly in that it is the only site with a WCC-owned car park where parking charges are not currently levied.” They say that with a £1 to £3 tariff the gross revenue would be £44,241, achieving a net annual income of between £22,120 and £26,545.
The papers add: “Whilst parking charges are something that clearly evokes strong public reaction, it is also the case that all monies received are used to offset running costs and hence to protect the service, and this is something that will be communicated to service users if/when charges are introduced.
“Use of the Greenway will remain free for walkers, cyclists and horse riders. Only those users choosing to leave a vehicle will incur a charge. Reasonably priced annual permits will be promoted for regular users.
“In order to protect and sustain these popular services for the future it is expedient to introduce car parking charges at Stratford Greenway, in common with other amenities, as part of an ongoing drive to make these services self-financing.
“Subsequent changes to the fees introduced will be considered as part of the established arrangements for reviewing fees and charges across the county parks portfolio.”
But in an 11-page document objecting to the introduction of charges – prepared for the consideration of cabinet members - the Greenway Rota Group lists a whole range of arguments against the proposal.
It warns that there could be dangerous queues on Seven Meadows Road as annual pass holders and/or leisure users tried to get into the car park as soon as possible after the 8am opening to be sure of obtaining a space.
“The car park could then be full from shortly after 8am with minimal movement (and, therefore, minimal further income generation) for the rest of the day (any suggested earlier opening time would not alleviate this possibility),” it argues.
It says current annual pass holders at Stratford District Council car parks – which cost £500 a year – could abandon these parks at a cost to the district council of £50,000 a year.
It challenges the whole economic basis of the county council case and concludes with a plea to the cabinet to reject any proposals to introduce parking charges at the location. It asks the cabinet to find other ways to resolve any internal budgetary issues within the country parks department.
