Proposals to increase availability of Bingham car parking spaces
Last updated: 4/4/2024
Plans to increase the availability of car parking spaces across Bingham’s car parks and on street bays are set to be discussed by Rushcliffe Borough Council’s (RBC) Cabinet.
Their meeting on Tuesday April 9 will consider a report in conjunction with the work of the Bingham Car Parking Strategy Group that suggests free parking for 30 minutes in the bays around the market place and up to one hour free in local car parks with a small tariff for longer stays.
The proposals are designed to improve parking in the town through encouraging short stay rather than all day parking in the town centre.
It follows surveys with car park users and wider stakeholders last year and focuses on the objective of the group to increase the turnover and regularity of free spaces across all locations to aid motorists, local businesses and service providers alike.
In Newgate Street and Needham Street car parks the proposed tariffs to be discussed are:
- Up to 1 hour - free
- 1-3 hours - £1
- Up to 4 hours - £5
- All day - £10
The findings from over 1,500 online responses and three days of on-site car park surveys were revealed in January and included:
- Shopping is the most popular trip purpose for car park users
- Over 90% users stay in the car parks for two hours or less, with around a third staying for less than 30 minutes at Newgate Street and around 50% at Needham Street.
- 29% of respondents to the in-person surveys were from residents who use car parks and reside in the town
- Length of stay increases considerably on-street.
- Identification of car park peak times usage around 9.30am-10am and 2.30pm-3.30pm
- Park and ride represents a small proportion of trip purpose for users at less than 5%
The Strategy Group has representatives from RBC, Bingham Town Council(BTC) and Nottinghamshire County Council.
Group members include RBC’s Cabinet Portfolio Holder for Environment and Safety Cllr Rob Inglis, Ward Members for Bingham, Mayor Cllr Rowan Bird and Cllr Norman Mees from BTC and RBC Leader and Nottinghamshire County Council’s Cabinet Member for Transport and Environment Cllr Neil Clarke.
A Rushcliffe Borough Council spokesperson said: “The meeting will discuss the focus on maximising the availability of spaces for short stay users whilst being able to accommodate those who wish to stay longer in line with the data the surveys highlighted.
“The group’s aim is to improve car parking in Bingham both in the short and long-term ensuring the needs of shoppers and visitors are prioritised and these changes could be an important first step.
“We have taken on board all the views of all stakeholders in the consultation and those in the working group. Officers have been continuing to work on the package of options that Cabinet will now discuss.
“In particular we have been doing further analysis on the tariff options for Newgate Street and Needham Street car parks and the proposals also meeting the priorities of the Council’s Off Street Car Parking Strategy
“On the potential costs to park being suggested, it is important there is sufficient funds to meet the cost of the changes that are required such as new car park machines and contributing to the overall cost of maintaining these car parks.”