New parking charges to begin at district centre car parks
Starting tomorrow, Tuesday 1 April, new parking charges and charging hours will take effect in district centre car parks across Bitterne, Portswood, Shirley and Woolston
After a consultation took place in November 2024 on the new parking tariffs, Cabinet approved the following changes on Tuesday 28 January:
- The removal of the two hour free parking period and the implementation of the below parking tariffs
- The introduction of a new charging period within the district centre car parks of Monday to Sunday 8am-8pm
Following concerns raised during the consultation, officers have developed a free permit for selected car parks for the sole purpose of dropping off or collecting a child to a school between 8.30am-9am and 3pm-3.30pm. The permit will be valid for 10 minutes, with an additional 10 minute grace period, and will be distributed through the selected schools.
Due to a high level of demand, the car parks at Commercial Street, West End Road, Bright Glade, Woodley Road North, and Woodley Road South will have a maximum stay of two hours only. The car park at Whites Road will have a smaller charge for the long stay tariff due to the lower level of demand seen at this site.
The table below shows the new tariffs for each car park. Charges apply Monday to Sunday, 8am to 8pm. Charges are up to the length of the stay, for example, a one hour and 20 minute stay requires the "up to" two hour charge.
| Car Park | 1 hour | 2 hours | 3 hours | 4 hours | 5 hours | 12 hours |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Angel Crescent | £0.50 | £1.00 | £1.50 | £2.50 | £4.00 | £6.00 |
| Bright Glade | £0.50 | £1.00 | - | - | - | - |
| Cannon Street | £0.50 | £1.00 | £1.50 | £2.50 | £4.00 | £6.00 |
| Colonnade | £0.50 | £1.00 | £1.50 | £2.50 | £4.00 | £6.00 |
| Commercial Street | £0.50 | £1.00 | - | - | - | - |
| Howards Grove | £0.50 | £1.00 | £1.50 | £2.50 | £4.00 | £6.00 |
| Lances Hill | £0.50 | £1.00 | £1.50 | £2.50 | £4.00 | £6.00 |
| Marlborough Road (North) | £0.50 | £1.00 | £1.50 | £2.50 | £4.00 | £6.00 |
| Marlborough Road (South) | £0.50 | £1.00 | £1.50 | £2.50 | £4.00 | £6.00 |
| Oakbank Road | £0.50 | £1.00 | £1.50 | £2.50 | £4.00 | £6.00 |
| Peartree Gardens | £0.50 | £1.00 | £1.50 | £2.50 | £4.00 | £6.00 |
| Portsmouth Road | £0.50 | £1.00 | £1.50 | £2.50 | £4.00 | £6.00 |
| West End Road | £0.50 | £1.00 | - | - | - | - |
| Westridge Road | £0.50 | £1.00 | £1.50 | £2.50 | £4.00 | £6.00 |
| Whites Road | £0.50 | £1.00 | - | - | - | - |
| Woodley Road (North) | £0.50 | £1.00 | - | - | - | - |
| Woodley Road (South) | £0.50 | £1.00 | - | - | - | - |
The council will monitor and review the parking demand and footfall within the District Centres from 1 April to 30 September to assess whether the changes to the parking tariff and charging periods are having a significant impact on car park use and visitor numbers.
Councillor Keogh, Cabinet Member for Environment and Transport, said:
“The changes to the parking tariffs and new charging period will support the operation and maintenance of the sites, including pothole repairs and relining of bays, whilst also seeking to manage demand for the car parks.
“We want to ensure parents and carers can drop off and collect their child without any concerns which is why we have introduced the new permit for those individuals. Over the next few months, we will be monitoring usage and footfall at our district centres to see if they are significantly affected by the new tariffs and if there is such an impact, the tariffs will be reviewed”.
