A new rate to encourage people to 'stop and shop'
Parking in the five pay and display bays in Askew Road will cost just 20p for 30 minutes from Monday (8 December) – down from a charge of £2.40 an hour.
The new tariff, which applies from 9am – 5pm on weekdays, has been introduced to encourage people to ‘stop and shop’ in the street.
Shopkeepers and workers we spoke to were all unaware of the change, which does not appear to have been advertised, but said it would make a difference: “That is good,” said Wayne, the manager of Askew Paint Centre. “I think they overcharge in this area. I have to park here every day and it’s quite extortionate. At lot of our customers complain. Others take a chance and park outside and hope they don’t get caught. Hopefully people will use their common sense and pay the new charge rather than take a risk.”
“That’s very good,” said the owner of the hardware store Handles and Things. “It will encourage more customers. I’ve seen so many people park and get a ticket between eight and nine o’clock in the morning. They get very angry. Even those who deliver complain about it. It will definitely make a difference. Otherwise people have to pay so much just to pick up a few small things.”
The owner of Sunshine Food and Wine was also enthused: “It’s better. They can spend more money in my shop,” he said.
Councillor Nicholas Botterill, deputy leader of H&F Council and cabinet member for
environment, said both shoppers and traders were likely to benefit: "We are listening to people who live, work and shop on Askew Road and this change is all about supporting all of them. Our small traders are the lifeblood of our local communities and we want to encourage residents to shop there.
"A recent survey we carried out showed that shoppers were staying in the area for
around half an hour, nipping in and out of the shops, and we wanted to reflect that
in the amount of money people paid to park. This will hopefully bring more business
to the road and the surrounding area," he said.
Ward councillors say other possible improvements to Askew Road include additional parking bays, four new loading bays and accident reduction measures at the junctions with Cobbold, Gayford and Haydn Park Roads.
A consultation is due to begin this month and will end in early January.
Yasmine Estaphanos
7 December 2008
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