Free visitor parking could end in restricted zones

Free parking for people visiting those living within residents' parking zones in Bristol could be scrapped.

People living in areas impacted by the schemes currently get between 50 and 70 free visitor passes a year and can purchase the same number as they get for free for £1.30 per permit.

Bristol City Council is proposing an end to the free allocation of visitor permits, saying it will reduce short car journeys, encourage people to use public transport, and prioritise parking for residents.

The council also hopes to make visitor permits available only in batches of 10 at a cost of between £20 and £25 per batch. A consultation on the proposals will end on Wednesday.

Helena Kowalski lives in Hotwells, which has a residents' parking scheme. She told BBC Radio Bristol the council had gone too far

"[The council] is obsessed with parking," she said.

Kowalski is having work done on her house and said providing permits to tradespeople would not be practical.

"If I ran out of visitor parking permits they could park here on the street for four hours," she said.

"It would cost £8, then they would have to go away for two hours, then come back for another four. Ask yourself, are they going to do that job? They are not."

Sarah and Michael Walker live round the corner and have a baby son who is often cared for by their relatives.

"None of our family live in Bristol," said Sarah Walker. "If this comes in, I won't have sufficient visitor permits for the childcare I need when I return to work."

Michael Walker added: "We had my sister and family to visit, they live in Honiton [in Devon].

"They could have got public transport but it was £340 return to Bristol by train for all of them. It's quite cruel, stopping people's relatives from visiting you".

But there is some support for the idea in Hotwells.

Steve Page has lived in the same house for 35 years and said he believed the scheme had improved the area, despite facing opposition when it was introduced in 2014.

"I love this neighbourhood but the number one problem we have is air pollution so any measure that reduces the amount of traffic [is positive]," he said.

"I don't mind visitors coming, I'd rather they didn't come in cars".

Councillor Ed Plowden, chair of the council's transport committee, said it was the first review of the city's residents' parking schemes since they were introduced more than a decade ago.

"The proposed changes are intended to reduce short car journeys... and prioritise parking for residents," he said.

"Whether changes are to be taken forward or not following the consultation there will be further communication to advise residents."