Following extensive discussion by Councillors, Dorset Council has revised the proposed changes to car parking arrangements.
After notice was provided to Town and Parish Councils of the proposed changes in mid-October, many people voiced their concerns, especially considering the current financial pressures faced by businesses and regarding the introduction of charges up until 8pm.
These recommendations were discussed at the Place and Resources Scrutiny Committee on Tuesday 1 December. Comments from the committee were passed to Cllr Ray Bryan, Portfolio Holder for Highways, Travel and Environment, who has worked closely with Dorset Council officers to consider the feedback and change the recommendations.
The recommendations as they were agreed today are: –
- Increase the all-day charge from £2 to £8 in Lyme Regis and West Bay. This will be a graduated charge, like we have in place in Weymouth*
- Implementation of Sunday charging. This recommendation stays as before, but Town and Parish Councils can ask for free days for special events**
- Extend morning charges in Purbeck to begin at 8am. This stays as was recommended.
The original recommendation to extend evening charges to 8pm has been withdrawn. Special arrangements for workers who require all day parking in West Bay and Lyme Regis will be considered in due course, as will local arrangements for Sunday markets and car boot sales.
The changes will come into effect on 1 February. Further changes to car parking arrangements – including resident and shoppers permits – will also be discussed in the new year.
Cllr Bryan also announced that current free parking arrangements for NHS and Care Workers will remain in place until midnight on Thursday 31 December.
Originally run for a limited time earlier this year but reinstated during the most recent lockdown period, Dorset Council is offering continued free parking for NHS and Care Workers throughout December 2020.
Provided they are on duty and displaying a relevant permit, or they have registered with Dorset Council, NHS and Care Workers can continue to use any Dorset Council-operated off-street car park free of charge until the end of 31 December 2020.
Cllr Ray Bryan, Dorset Council’s Portfolio Holder for Highways, Travel and Environment, said:
“We have listened to the concerns around the changes to car parking arrangements and amended our recommendations accordingly. I feel that the new changes strike a balance between supporting our town centres and high streets, as well as ensuring charging is fair and can sustain our car parks across the county. I’d like to thank the many Councillors and officers who have provided feedback and worked hard to get this result, which I am very pleased with.
“I’m also pleased to be able to support our colleagues in the NHS and Care sectors by extending our free parking offer throughout December. Despite the recent lockdown period ending, these workers will continue to provide a vital service to some of our most vulnerable and isolated residents over the festive period. It makes sense to keep this scheme running for a few more weeks and also ensure no-one is caught out when the offer ends from New Year’s Day.
I’d also like to remind everyone that there is free Christmas parking for shoppers both this Saturday and next (12 and 19 December) in Dorset Council car-parks. Visitors should check signage in car parks and on our website for details.”
* Current charges in Weymouth are:-
- 1 hour £1
- 2 hours £2
- 3 hours £3.50
- 4 hours £4.50
- 6 hours £6
- All day £8
West Bay and Lyme Regis would have a similar arrangement, although this has not been confirmed yet.
** Implementation of Sunday charging except that at the request of the relevant Town or Parish Council, Dorset Council would consider the case for suspending car park charging on a Sunday to enable a local event to be held. In such cases agreement to suspend would be at the sole discretion of Dorset Council and each individual case would be considered on its merits. These provisions would apply only in exceptional cases and on a limited number of occasions in a year.
