AUSTIN URGES TRADERS TO HAVE THEIR SAY ON PARKING CONSULTATION

Dudley MP Ian Austin is calling on town centre traders to have their say on a parking consultation which has just begun.

The consultation is being led by Dudley Council and invites residents, visitors and businesses to have their say on a draft document on parking. It opened yesterday and will run until February 20.

Austin has been approached on a number of occasions in the past by town centre traders unhappy with the current parking arrangements. He wants them to make sure their views are taken into consideration when the new parking plan is produced.

Ian Austin MP said:

“The consultation is a chance for shoppers and shop owners to have their say on how parking can be improved in the town centre. They’re the ones who are affected by the parking arrangements so they should have a key role in deciding what changes are made.

“There’s no easy solution but the question the Council should be looking to answer is “how can we make it easier for people to come into the town centre?” One of the things I’d like to see is a greater mixture of parking with more free parking, more on-street parking and the two hour parking zone that’s just been introduced in Stone Street extended to other areas.

“We need more parking in the town centre and we should be asking whether it is time to look again at bringing parking back to Stone Street Square.”