Browse Sections

• Education
• James Chapman-Kelly
• Neil Roland
• Mancunian candidate
• Special reports

Park and pay anger

3/ 7/2008

TRADERS and councillors have spoken of their dismay following the introduction of car parking charges Chorlton’s largest public car park.

The new charges at the site – which is owned by Citybranch Limited, who also own neighbouring Chorlton precinct – mean that shoppers now have to pay £1 for two hours worth of car parking. Prices increase the longer people stay in the car park, leaving shoppers £1.50 out of pocket for between two to three hour’s worth of parking, and up to £2.50 for three to 12 hour’s worth of parking.

Before the new charges were introduced at the car park – which is just off Wilbraham Road – parking was free to all users.

Shoppers will now be charged for parking all week, Sunday to Monday.

Makeshift signs, attached to trees, and new bright blue paying machines have already been installed within the car park.

The charges have been introduced after management of the land – which had previously been outsourced to car parking giants Euro Car Parks – was handed over to new company, Excel Parking, by land owners, Citybranch Limited.

Trader Darren Birch, who co-owns Pad gift shop on Chorlton’s Manchester Road – said: " I think that this is a real shame and that it will have a negative impact on the number of people who would normally visit Chorlton’s shops. Having to pay for parking will dissuade a lot of people from coming into the area and it will only make parking – which is already an issue in Chorlton – worse.

"All this will serve to do is worsen the problem’s on nearby residential streets as people won’t want to pay to park in the precinct." Chorlton Councillor Sheila Newman has also slammed the decision. She said: "These parking charges are quite a lot and to go from paying nothing to this, people will really notice the difference.

"All I can see is that this will make the parking problems around Chorlton even worse than they already are.

"The charges are running all week, so this just seems like a money-making exercise to me."

When contacted by the Reporter Citybranch director Adam Gross said he had no knowledge about the new charges. He said: "I did not actually know that these charges had been introduced, or what they were. I changed the management of the site to Excel Parking and they are now running things.

"I am less concerned about the charges and more concerned that the site offers enough parking spaces for shoppers."