Residents have another chance to comment on parking changes

From this week, residents in parts of Cheltenham will have another chance to tell the county council what they think about planned parking changes.

Posters will be put up in all the streets affected by the changes so residents and businesses know what’s going on and how to take part.

For the past few months, Gloucestershire County Council has been discussing ideas for improving residents parking and pay and display with residents and businesses.

The new schemes are needed to make parking easier for residents living in congested areas and to help visitors find parking at local shops, businesses and the hospital.

Parking is scarce and highly contested so the council has been asking local people to decide how to balance the competing needs and demands of businesses, shoppers, commuters and residents whilst reducing congestion.

The reviews of parking are focusing on outlying residential areas around the centre of Cheltenham are split into a number of phases.

In phase one in Cheltenham around five different parking zones are being looked at covering approximately 4,000 households mostly in the St Lukes, Fairview and All Saints areas to the east of the town centre.

People living or working in these areas have already commented on our draft plans, with many hundreds attending local drop in sessions during the summer. 

Acting on this feedback officers have made changes to zone boundaries, the maximum waiting time for non-residents and the extent of parking controls.

We are also looking at introducing virtual parking permits, enabling people to pay monthly and keeping keep admin costs down.

Residents and businesses now have a final opportunity to tell us what they think of the proposals before we proceed to the formal legal stages of the process for making changes on the ground.

Although the legal process will give people the opportunity to formally register objections, the council would prefer to resolve any concerns earlier if possible.

Posters put up in the affected streets will contain specific detail relating to that street.

Details of the final draft plans can be found online at www.gloucestershire.gov.uk/permitparking at, Cheltenham Borough Council, Cheltenham Library and at Shire Hall.