Epsom & Ewell Borough Parking Strategy Epsom & Ewell Borough Council and Surrey County Council June 2012 Epsom & Ewell Borough Council June 2012 Borough Parking Strategy The Parking Strategy Task Group of the Epsom & Ewell Local Committee Members Councillor Neil Dallen County Councillor Chris Frost Councillor Julie Morris Councillor Jean Smith County Councillor Colin Taylor County Councillor David Wood Acknowledgements I would like to thank the following Officers for their significant contribution to the work of the Task Group. In alphabetical order, they are: Steve Clavey, Senior Engineer Steve Davies, Director of Operations PC John Fruen, Casualty Reduction Officer Karol Jakubczyk, Planning Policy Manager Nicola Morris, Community Partnership and Committee Officer Robin Muir, Borough Council Parking Manager Lynda Tarling, Local Committee & Partnership Officer Chris Frost/Task Group Chairman June 2012 1 Epsom & Ewell Borough Council June 2012 Borough Parking Strategy Contents: Executive Summary 1. Introduction 2. The Parking Strategy 3. Parking Issues and Solutions 4. Implementation and Monitoring Annex 1: Policy Context 2 Epsom & Ewell Borough Council June 2012 Borough Parking Strategy Executive Summary The Epsom & Ewell Parking Strategy seeks to identify the main parking problems that face the Borough and the solutions that will be introduced to resolve them. The Strategy builds upon the Surrey Parking Strategy, which sets broad objectives for the whole of the County. Critically, it will provide a level of local detail that will explain the factors that make the Borough’s parking problems and solutions different from those found elsewhere in Surrey. The Strategy identifies the following: Key Issues The Borough is unlike other parts of Surrey. Its mix of uses, its high level of accessibility, the high level of car ownership, the presence of historic areas of streets with little or no off-street parking provision and the proximity to Greater London and other destinations result in a unique set of parking related issues. The Borough is not a homogenous area and as a consequence the Strategy will apply in different ways to different parts of the Borough. Epsom Town Centre and the residential and employment areas that surround it experience high levels of parking demand. The high level of free parking provision, both on and off-street, within the Town Centre and surrounding areas has led to conflict between residents, shoppers, commuters and local businesses. The Council recognises that it must carefully balance the parking needs of local residents against the continued vitality and viability of the Town Centre. The availability of free, particularly on-street, parking provision has led to the under- utilisation of public off-street parking provision. Evidence shows that the availability of free parking has encouraged visitors to the Town Centre to make shorter and more frequent trips. These inefficient travel patterns contribute to congestion, traffic volumes and increasing carbon dioxide emissions. Other evidence shows that illegal parking at key points within the Town Centre is a major cause of congestion and travel delay. As a direct consequence there has been an increase in carbon dioxide emissions. Future developments, for example for housing and employment uses, must provide an appropriate level of parking provision. 3 Epsom & Ewell Borough Council June 2012 Borough Parking Strategy 1. Introduction The Borough Council is the lead authority on parking matters in Epsom & Ewell. It manages and enforces both public off-street and on-street (the latter on behalf of the County Council) provision across the Borough. As the local planning authority, the Council is responsible for ensuring that an appropriate level of parking provision is maintained to meet future growth, both through its long term planning role and its development management function. The Council also has a key role in mitigating the adverse impacts of climate change1, which influences the management of car park provision. Meeting car parking demand is a significant issue for much of the South East of England. An accessible highway network, perceived inefficiencies in the public transport network, high levels of car ownership and affluent residents have resulted in a very mobile population. Accommodating such mobility has become a problem not only for highway management (in terms of traffic congestion and volumes) but also in terms of providing appropriate parking provision to meet demand at residential, shopping and employment centres. Demand for parking provision is only one part of the issue. Evidence shows that inefficient travel patterns and car usage are a significant source of carbon dioxide emissions, which contributes to climate change. Parking provision, management and enforcement can be used alongside other measures to encourage more sustainable travel and car use. The Council acknowledges that there is a fine balance to be made (in terms of parking charges) to ensure that the continued economic vitality and viability of Borough is maintained. The Borough is unlike other parts of Surrey being mainly urban (about 58% of the land area) in nature. This area is enclosed by the Metropolitan Green Belt (about 42%), which serves to contain the existing urban area. Although the urban area is mostly comprised of residential areas and uses, there are numerous other uses that contribute to the Borough’s unique character. These include – town and local shopping centre uses (such as shops and community facilities), employment areas (such as offices, storage and small scale manufacturing facilities), education uses, healthcare facilities (including specialised institutional accommodation), public and private open spaces (such as country parks, woodland, golf courses and recreation grounds), and the Race Course. The Borough is highly accessible, with good public transport links provided by local bus services (albeit mainly during the daytime on weekdays) and direct inter-urban rail links to Greater London and other neighbouring centres (such as Dorking, Guildford and Sutton) but only very indirect rail connections to other relevant potential destinations. Fundamentally, the Borough, and in particular Epsom Town Centre, is 1 Particularly, in relation to its role in helping achieve the carbon dioxide reduction objectives set out within the Climate Change Act 2008. 4 Epsom & Ewell Borough Council June 2012 Borough Parking Strategy highly accessible by private motor car. This factor is amplified by levels of car ownership and usage that are significantly higher than the national average. This combination of circumstances has resulted in a car parking environment that is markedly different from that found across the rest of Surrey. The Strategy will build upon the Surrey-wide Parking Strategy. It will set out the Council’s aims and objectives relating to parking, the distinctive parking issues that affect the Borough and the solutions that will be used to improve the current situation. The Strategy will be used by the Council to guide the management and enforcement of all public parking provision, including on-street provision, which we manage and enforce on Surrey County Council’s behalf. It will also, in conjunction with planning policy documents contained within the Epsom & Ewell Local Development Framework (LDF), be used to influence the scale and management of additional parking provision required from future development proposals. The Council will ensure that new developments provide an appropriate level of on-site parking provision, which will meet the needs of that development without having an adverse impact upon existing residents or highway safety. Where possible the Council will identify the amount of new off-street parking that will need to be provided by a new development as part of the site allocation process. On smaller development sites, or on those that come forward as ‘windfalls’ the Council will apply parking standards that reflect local conditions and objectives. The Council is preparing new parking standards that will form part of the Delivery Development Plan Document. 5 Epsom & Ewell Borough Council June 2012 Borough Parking Strategy 2. The Parking Strategy The overarching aims and objectives of the Strategy are: Provide a framework within which the Borough Council and County Council can work together to agree an appropriate set of measures that meet the needs of residents and businesses. To facilitate the introduction of new Borough–wide parking standards for new developments To encourage more sustainable travel patterns that positively contribute towards carbon dioxide reduction, reducing traffic congestion and traffic volumes Meet the Borough Council’s Plan ‘E’ objectives Resolve the conflict between the needs of residents’ domestic parking, town centre business parking, and parking for shoppers and commuters Identify parking solutions that balance usage and revenue, and maximise the usage of existing public parking provision The Parking Strategy sits alongside other important local and national strategies, plans and policies. The Strategy should be read in conjunction with these other documents, as its overarching aims and objectives are cross-cutting. Details of these other key policy documents are set out under Annex 1. 6 Epsom & Ewell Borough Council June 2012 Borough Parking Strategy The Overall Vision The Borough will become a place where the parking needs of residents, shoppers, businesses, commuters and other visitors are balanced