Parking charges hike would be 'disastrous', warns business leader
A HIKE in car parking charges in Christchurch to persuade people to use public transport instead of driving would be “disastrous” according to the town’s Chamber of Commerce
President of the chamber, Peter Watson-Lee told the A&T he believes BCP Council is “quite openly” saying they want to reduce car usage and one way to do that is to raise parking prices in Christchurch in line with that in Bournemouth.
He said: “In their statement about budgets and ambitions for the forthcoming year the BCP Council mention the parking in Christchurch.
“At the moment it is £1 for two hours which we battled to get for two years. It has been very successful at bringing people into the town to shop and enjoy the coffee shops, pubs and restaurants.
“If it goes up to what is charged in Bournemouth, which in some roads can be £3-4 an hour we believe traders in Christchurch will really suffer.
“We have heard the BCP Council want to introduce a charge of £2.50 an hour but people will not pay that to park here. It could be disastrous for the future of our High Street.”
He says the chamber is trying to clarify BCP Council’s plans for parking in Christchurch, adding: “High parking charges in Bournemouth is one thing as they have a good bus service, but our town does not.
“There are a lot of people who simply could not get into Christchurch to use the High Street unless they drive as the bus service is virtually non-existent.”
BCP Council says it is currently undertaking a “complete a strategic parking review”, the results of which should be available by the end of this year.
Cllr Andy Hadley, cabinet member for transport and infrastructure at BCP Council, said: “As part of our commitment to harmonising major service strategies and policies across Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole within two years a strategic parking review is being undertaken for the whole area and a number of proposals are being considered, including price changes.
“No decisions have yet been taken and we remain committed to balancing the need to harmonise our parking policies with the need to protect the vitality of our town and district centres.”
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