Free parking to drive regeneration instead of revenue, says Reynolds

A Tameside MP has called for the introduction of three hours of free parking to increase trade in the borough’s town centres.

In a letter to Tameside Council’s (TMBC) transport lead Cllr Stephen Homer, Jonathan Reynolds, MP for Stalybridge and Hyde, said he has listened to constituents unhappy with the change to parking charges introduced in September 2023. 

In those, most council car parks and on-street parking bays cost £1.50 for the first hour, with all day rates ranging from £4 to £9. 

Mr Reynolds, however, said in a social media post: “My view is that town centre parking must be seen as a driver of footfall rather than a source of income and that with the right, evidence driven approach, parking policy can be a way to promote town centre regeneration.” 

TMBC is canvassing opinion from the public in its 2024-25 parking review, insisting that no decisions have been made yet and that it wants to make sure its current offer is ‘fit for purpose’. 

In his letter, Mr Reynolds said: “Taking into account the approach taken elsewhere, it would be beneficial to have an initial free parking period of 3 hours in town centre car parks, followed by higher tariffs to discourage all day parking. 

“This would be an initial hit for the council. 

“However, with tough enforcement and a reasonable contract parking rate for businesses, employees and those living in town centres, alongside the hopeful increase in business rates, we could actually see revenue for the council increase as our town centres regenerate. 

“For those car parks outside of our town centres such as the Stamford Park car park adjacent to Tameside Hospital, a reasonable hourly rate to attract people to the park and maybe contract passes for doctors and nurses at the hospital.” 

Phil Chadwick, Conservative councillor for Hyde Werneth said: "As Shadow Member for Towns and Communities on Tameside Council, I would like to say to Jonathan Reynolds MP, 'Welcome to the party'.

"We've been calling for FREE parking for years! Better late than never, I suppose."