FREE parking in some of Somerset’s towns could be scrapped along with the introduction of Sunday and overnight charging under proposals put forward by Somerset Council.
The local authority will review its rates and charging principles for around 200 council-run car parks, the first time since 2023 in a bid to bring “consistency” across the county.
But opponents of the scheme say that it has the potential to “push people away from our town centres.”
Read More: Somerset Council Tax could rise by 7.5 per cent in 2025
Read More: Taunton Town Council questions plans to sell off car park
Somerset Council is set to discuss the proposals on February 24, 2025, with a public consultation thereafter if the proposals are approved by the council’s executive.
The proposals include the introduction of charges at free car parks; county-wide overnight car parking charges; standardising Sunday parking charges at all car parks; along with on-street charging to limited waiting bays in town centres.
Somerset Council’s Lead Member for Transport and Waste, Councillor Richard Wilkins said: “We have many car parks in Somerset and there are significant costs and challenges involved in running and maintaining them.”
“It’s really important we bring fairness and uniformity in charges across the county and in turn the extra income will help ensure the parking service is fully self-financed and can continue to be run, staffed and maintained properly.”
Free car parks in towns including Somerton, Crewkerne, Bridgwater, Langport, and Street could be set for a £2 a day fee, while over 60 busy car parks in Taunton (including Canon Street and Orchard multi-storey), Bridgwater, Wellington, Chard (including Boden Street) and Yeovil face car parking charges on a Sunday.
Opposition Spokesperson for Transport, Andy Dingwall, said: “This is a short-sighted proposal. It’s going to push people away from our town centres, putting even more pressure on local businesses, many of whom are already struggling – we’re being asked to pay more and more for a council that is delivering less and less.”
Mandy Chilcott, leader of the Conservative opposition at the Somerset Council, said: "Somerset Council has failed to get a grip of its finances since its inception, declaring a financial emergency at the end of 2023. It has been slow to deliver any of the benefits that a unitary structure should have yielded and now seeks to make Somerset residents pay.”
“The introduction of this parking policy is one in a number of plans it has to increase its income.”
The local authority faces a funding gap of £66 million for 2025/26 and has been given special permission by the Labour government to increase Council Tax by 7.5 per cent this year.
Share