Fury over 'ridiculous' new car parking charges in Lancashire town amid fears shops could shut for good

Rawtenstall Chamber of Commerce was due to discuss the issue of car parking with its members this week, after being approached by Rossendale Council for talks earlier this year.

There has been no regulation of off-street parking since 2009, according to some councillors. And this has seen, they say, drivers leaving their vehicles in short-stay bays “all day”.

But businesses and residents are worried about the possible introduction of charges in a town centre which has already seen disruption around major roadworks – and fear it could harm town centre shops and cafes.

John Redmond grew up in Rawtenstall and now lives in Waterfoot. A retired shoemaker, aged 75, he said: “Paid-for parking would not be a good idea. Things cost enough now without any extra money needed for parking.

“There’s only so much space in Rawtenstall and traffic levels have gone crazy over the years. But I’m not sure that commuters parking their cars and getting buses to Manchester have caused the increased traffic.

“I do think businesses need to be organised and say clearly what they want. They need to talk to customers and the public too. ”

He added: “I usually park behind Bank Street. People love walking up and down Bank Street, so parking spaces need to be kept pretty close, whatever happens. I sometimes go to Bury or Burnley but parking there can be a bit haphazard there.

“If things are made more difficult in Rawtenstall, that wouldn’t be good, whether its paid-parking or changes to the traffic and street widths. There’s talk of widening the pavements and making Bank Street one-way for traffic. But I go to Haworth in West Yorkshire quite a lot. It has lots of cobbles and narrow streets but suffers parking problems.”

One business person, who did not want to be named, contacted the Local Democracy Reporting Service, saying individual businesses and local residents should be consulted by the council too, in addition to the chamber of commerce.

Speaking ahead of the chamber meeting, chairman David Gould, an optician, said: “Car parking has been a thorny issue for many years in Rawtenstall. Since the old disc parking system was abandoned in 2009, there has been no regulation of off-street parking. And many cars are parked on short-stay car parks all day, meaning car parks are often full with no available spaces for people wanting to use town centre shops and services.

“Many meetings have taken place over the years between Rossendale Council and the chamber to discuss alternatives. But no changes have ever resulted.

“In January, the chamber leadership was approached by the council’s head of housing and regeneration when a proposal for parking changes was presented. The proposal was to be presented to the council’s Labour group in early February and I asked if I could attend, which the Labour group agreed.

“Following that meeting, it was decided a general meeting of chamber members would be held to discuss whether we, as a group, were supportive or against the proposed changes.”

Mr Gould added: “The chamber is very mindful that such changes, if they were to be supported, will not just affect town centre businesses. There will be an impact on residents. In the event that chamber members are supportive of these proposals, we will encourage Rossendale Council to consult with the community. There is, of course, a chance that chamber members will not support the council proposals, in which case, there is a good chance nothing will change.”

Locals say businesses are already contending with disruption linked to work on the town’s ‘gyratory’ road system. The town centre also faces pavement works around Bank Street and traffic flow changes with the Rawtenstall Masterplan, funded by government and Rossendale Council cash. Currently, parking is free in Rossendale Council owned off-street car parks.

Rossendale Council was approached for comment about parking ideas and consultation.

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Simon Riley, also from Rawtenstall, runs the ProCraft plastering business. Parked in his van on Bank Street, he said: “For me, there is no issue with parking. It’s quite good. I come here every morning for a coffee. Bank Street is easy to reach and there are plenty of nearby car parks currently.

“Charging people to park would be wrong. But businesses need to be clear about that they want for the future. I also think making Bank Street one-way would be a massive mistake – but that’s a different issue.

” I don’t think people parking here and getting buses to Manchester is a problem either. And if they did drive into Manchester, they’d probably face exorbitant parking prices or get a parking fine for some reason.”

Paul Braithwaite was working in the Heathcliffe & Co menswear shop, owned by his wife Karon.

He said: “Rawtenstall has good levels of customers, a good mix of shops and car parking. There are no parking issues here at the moment. We came here from Ramsbottom, where parking was atrocious and there wasn’t much free parking.

“If Rossendale Council wants to introduce paid parking just to make money, that would be ridiculous. It would just put people out of business. I’m not exactly sure what local businesses want but I’ll be attending the chamber meeting.”

He added: “You can currently park free on Bank Street for one hour or longer elsewhere including the supermarkets. For most people visiting, three hours’ free parking is enough. But people who work here need longer.”

Georgia Felcey and daughter Sunny were visiting from Bacup. Georgia said: “I come to Rawtenstall three or four times a week and mainly park at Asda. I don’t park on Bank Street because it’s limited to one hour, which isn’t quite long enough for me.

“Introducing paid parking wouldn’t effect me, if free spaces remained at the supermarkets. But paid-for parking wouldn’t encourage me to come here. I think parking is generally OK in Rawtenstall. It’s the surrounding areas that cause me trouble, where there are less options.”