Oxfordshire County Council is set to introduce new long-stay parking for airport travellers at Thornhill Park and Ride, with an eight-day tariff of £15 and a 15-day option costing £30.
The new charges were approved the County Council’s transport portfolio holder Gareth Epps on Thursday, 08 October, following a summer consultation in which 91 per cent of respondents supported the proposal.
The change will allow people travelling from Oxford to Heathrow or Gatwick to leave their cars at Thornhill while using the Oxford Bus Company’s Airline service. The service operates from Thornhill to both airports and runs throughout the day and night.
The park and ride currently has 1,335 spaces and, under the existing arrangements, vehicles are generally limited to a maximum stay of 72 hours.
The council’s proposal is intended in part to address the impact of airport travellers parking on nearby residential streets.
Councillor Glynis Phillips, who represents Barton, Sandhills and Risinghurst, said residents had experienced the effects of people leaving their cars in the area while travelling to the airport.
She described hearing “car doors slamming and luggage being wheeled in the early hours” as holidaymakers used residential roads instead of paying for airport parking.
Ms Phillips said the new charges were “extremely reasonable” and represented a “reasonable alternative” to parking in residential streets. She described the changes as “long overdue and welcome”.
The council says there is sufficient spare capacity at Thornhill to accommodate the additional long-stay parking.
A report presented to the council said the site continued to have “a substantial level of spare parking capacity” even during Oxford University open days, which are among the busiest periods of the year for park and ride use.
The proposal has nevertheless raised questions about whether using park-and-ride spaces for airport parking is consistent with the site’s wider transport purpose.
Danny Yee, a campaigner with Oxfordshire Liveable Streets, supported the proposal but questioned whether it represented the most sustainable use of the site.
He said long-stay airport parking could have an “outsized impact on capacity for a relatively small number of car trips”.
One respondent to the consultation also argued that allowing airport travellers to leave their cars at the site could encourage flying rather than sustainable travel, while reducing the availability of parking for people using buses to travel into Oxford.
Oxford Bus Company has strongly supported the proposal. Its Airline service provides direct coach links from Oxford to Heathrow and Gatwick via Thornhill.
The new tariffs will not take effect immediately. The council says implementation depends on approval of a new parking enforcement contract, the installation of new signage and updates to its websites.
The date on which the new long-stay arrangements will begin has not yet been confirmed.
Mr Epps said the scheme appeared to be a “win-win”, providing residents and visitors with a good-value parking option while making use of existing facilities and reducing the impact of airport parking on local residents.
The council’s published fees documentation records the proposed eight-day airport tariff at £15 and the 15-day tariff at £30.
Reporting contribution by Isabella Harris, Local Democracy Reporter (LDR) for Oxfordshire, covering local politics, council meetings and planning decisions across six councils in the county.
