Thirty minutes free on street parking
Proposals to introduce a six-month trial offering 30 minutes’ free on-street parking in Hounslow West and Brentford Town Centre were agreed at last night's cabinet meeting (4 December).
The aim of the scheme is to support local shopping parades that often have to compete with supermarkets which have large, free car parks by providing short-term on-street parking for customers. It should be in place April.
Cllr Ruth Cadbury said "We hope traders in the High Street will benefit as experience from other areas with Stop & Shop parking show the benefits. I'm really pleased that we can roll it out in Brentford, where shops have suffered in the global recession".
Cllr Ed Mayne, Hounslow’s cabinet member for community safety and regulatory services, said:
“We want to work with and support local businesses in smaller community shopping parades to make it easier for them to attract customers and maintain their viability, as well as responding to residents and businesses who have requested a ‘stop and shop’ scheme in Hounslow West and Brentford.
“Offering 30 minutes’ free parking has benefits for both customers and traders, and restricting it to just half an hour before having to pay for a ticket also makes sure that these local parades, which are close to transport links, don’t become ‘commuter car parks’.
“We’re proposing to run this as a six-month trial before bringing another report to cabinet to review how the scheme has worked.”
The ‘Stop and Shop’ initiative is already operating at four locations in Isleworth and Heston. If the proposal for Hounslow West and Brentford is agreed, it will be implemented from next spring.
The cabinet report is available here.
December 10, 2012