Residents on six Banbury roads will require parking permits after the town’s first controlled parking zones (CPZs) were introduced.
Beargarden Road, Crouch Street, Monument Street, New Road, West Bar Street and Westbeech Court in the central-west area of Banbury will be affected.
Residents will have to pay £66 per year to park outside their homes in a bid to curb increased volumes of non-resident parking.
Some of the yellow lines currently in place will either be moved or taken away to create more parking spaces, while new restrictions will pop up to try to control what representatives of Banbury Cross Health Centre described as “indiscriminate parking” on Monument Street, which runs to the back of its building.
Apart from the loading bay and disabled places in Monument Street and the existing disabled spot outside West Bar surgery, all parking spaces on the roads will be for permit holders only from 8.00am until 6.00pm on Monday to Saturday.
Residents aged 70 or over are able to apply for free permits for visitors. Other residents get the first 25 visitor permits for free, with the next 25 charged at £25. Contractors can apply for a permit lasting up to a week for £25.
The county’s report read: “The area covered by the proposals is attractive to non-residents as it offers free on-street parking compared to some nearby off-street car parks which charge, hence these residential streets suffer pressure on the limited number of spaces available.”
The measures bring to fruition a request made via a petition to Oxfordshire County Council, which was raised by a resident in March 2021 and subsequently supported by Councillor Eddie Reeves (Con, Banbury Calthorpe), the representative of the division.
Councillor Andrew Gant (Lib Dem, Wolvercote & Summertown), the county’s cabinet member for highway management, welcomed that process while deliberating his decision.
“That is a good thing,” he said. “The purpose of petitions is to allow concerned residents to have an input into what happens on the ground and it actually works. I welcome that.
“I note that the local county councillor supports the scheme, the argument for it is well made, and I am happy to agree the recommendations.”
Councillor Gant had received statements from two residents who supported the scheme and wished to address opposition from some of the residents on Beargarden Road.
The council’s report acknowledged a petition signed by 55 people, 40 of which were Beargarden Road residents, over switching the side of the road on which the yellow lines appear.
The council estimates that will increase the current number of available parking spaces from 10 to 21, and the change was approved as part of the overall scheme.
