New plan aims to make cars unwelcome in city centre

A BOLD plan has been put forward to stop people from parking in Liverpool city centre.

- By LIAM THORP

Liverpool City Council's Parking Strategy has a key aim of reducing the ability for people to drive into and park in the city centre.

The major strategy - which will be rubber-stamped by the council's cabinet later this month includes bold plans to reduce city centre parking, including the removal of existing city centre parking sites, a potential tax on employers with parking spaces, and plans for a new multi-storey car park on the outskirts of the city centre.

In the report, the council states that parking provision within the city centre is a "key enabler for vehicle movements in the heart of the city, as it draws in private vehicles leading to congestion, poor air quality and increased conflict with pedestrians and cyclists".

The new parking strategy sets out what officers are calling a "bold vision for the consolidation and relocation of city centre car parking".

They say this will make better use of the space available for the public within the heart of the city, will improve the public realm for pedestrians and will provide suitable parking provision in the right locations.

Any reduction in parking will need to be matched with improvements to alternative modes of travel.

The report adds: "Future car parks in the city will be better utilised through the consolidation of spaces across the area, with poorly occupied car parks that currently take up valuable city centre space becoming a thing of the past."

So how does the council intend to do this? Firstly, it is important to note that this document is a strategy with ambitions and long-term aims, but there are some specific proposals mentioned geared towards stopping people from parking in Liverpool city centre. We have summarised these key plans below.

Reduce city centre parking