Free parking to remain at Basingstoke park after petition wins concession
Council comes up with compromise after complaints about plans to charge at Eastrop Park
Visitors to Eastrop Park will be able to park free for two hours when planned car parking charges are introduced in September.
Basingstoke and Deane Borough Council say they've found a balance which supports free use of the council’s parks, while also ensuring the car park at the town centre park is not misused and can be improved for the benefit of all.
The decision comes as a petition with over 2,200 signatures was presented to Council calling for the plans to introduce parking charges at the popular Green Flag park to be reviewed.
Cabinet Member for Resident Services Cllr Rebecca Bean said:
“For some time we have had concerns that the car parks at Eastrop Park are not being used solely by those people who visit the park, it is used by people who work in the town centre or nearby business parks and this is unfair on the users of Eastrop Park. We also have to maintain and improve all of our car parks, including introducing EV charging facilities, and the funding for this is generated from car parking charges.
“As part of the work to explore introducing charging at these car parks we carried out two consultations with residents and visitors to gauge their views on the proposals, which included a much-reduced tariff in comparison to other town centre short stay car parks. The tariff was designed to be affordable but also deter non-users of the park from parking there.
“On becoming the portfolio holder responsible for parking in May and hearing of the petition, I felt it appropriate to pause on plans to introduce charges so I could consider all of the information.
“Having taken the time to now do this I have decided to revise the tariff for Eastrop car park to include a free two-hour ticket which allows users of the park to visit for two hours with no cost for parking. Families wishing to stay for up to four hours will only need to pay £2 to park compared to £4.30 in our long stay town car parks.
“In making this decision, I and the officers have tried to find a balance which supports free use of our parks, while also ensuring our car parks are not misused and can be improved for the benefit of all.”
It is planned the revised parking tariff will begin at Eastrop Park in September, after the school holidays. Parking will continue to be free for blue badge holders, as it is in all other council operated car parks.