Kenilworth residents fear they will lose out from Abbey Fields parking charges
CHARGES for Abbey Fields car park have been agreed but issues of residents parking is still up in the air with many set to lose out.
Kenilworth town councillors supported the proposed fees following a presentation by officers from Warwick District Council. A report will now go to the executive and full council for approval.
But they are calling for more residents parking to be made available in the report as many who rely on the free site look set to miss out completely. The proposed charges will be in line with other car parks in the town and are being introduced after planners agreed to the introduction of pay and display machines at the site earlier this month.
Officers have agreed to provide some residents permits to cater for those with no off- street parking but warned that these will be limited.
Gary Charlton, council officer, said they are currently only looking at providing permits for residents on Bridge Street, High Street and New Street but this has yet to be finalised.
He said: “We will take in numbers from the very close locality. It will not be for everyone, that is simply not practical. This is where it becomes problematic as we don’t think we want a massive residents scheme here.”
It was decided that Pears Close already had “ample” off-street parking and would likely not be included.
But Cllr Mark Lewis warned they “should not underestimate” the number of residents who rely on the car park day and night. Also calling for more permits, to be made available, Cllr Michael Coker said: “We need to take great care as in that area there are places with no parking provision at all.
“We need to make it clear that it will be necessary to extend the residents scheme currently proposed.”
Members also expressed concern that Fieldgate Lane would become more congested as cars try and park for free, leading to road blockages and jeopardising safety.
Officers agreed it was “reasonable to assume” that this would get worse but assured it would be monitored.
Members sent their concerns to be considered in the final decision-making stages by Warwick District Council.
If approved, fees will apply from 8am to 6pm Monday to Saturday with the first two hours proposed to be free, £1.50 for up to three hours, £2 for four hours and £2.50 for more than four hours. Season tickets will cost £375.32 a year.
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Weather for Kenilworth
Wednesday 19 June 2013
Today
Sunny spells
Temperature: 13 C to 24 C
Wind Speed: 12 mph
Wind direction: North west
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