Maidenhead & Windsor

Yellow Advantage cards could soon open the door to free short-term parking for Windsor and Maidenhead Royal Borough residents on more than two dozen Windsor roads.

If the proposal gets the go ahead it will mean that charges for the first period of parking – anything from 30 minutes to an hour, depending on the street and the parking scheme in place – will be abolished, giving local people enough time to nip to the shops or visit friends living in streets close to Windsor town centre.

At the same time, town centre businesses could be offered more and better parking opportunities with the creation of a new outer zone all-day business permit for spaces in Alma Road, Clarence Road and Frances Road.

The Windsor and Maidenhead council’s planning and environment overview and scrutiny panel will discuss the merits of these proposals when it meets on Tuesday evening (July 3) before cabinet takes the final decision on Thursday July 26.

Cllr Colin Rayner, lead member for highways, transport and the environment, said both new initiatives were positive examples of the council listening to the views of residents and businesses.

He explained: “We all know that the high demand for parking in Windsor can be a problem for residents and businesses. Feedback from the people who use the council’s on-street parking spaces regularly and from Windsor and District Chamber of Commerce is key to introducing successful changes that meet local needs.

“We have looked very carefully at how we can make the yellow Advantage Card work better for residents and by offering the first parking period free on a number of streets we can help bring about very real ‘advantages’ for our community.”

If given the go-ahead by cabinet, the new Windsor and Maidenhead schemes will feature:
Yellow Advantage Card holder parking
First tariff period free at:

* Barry Avenue – currently 50p for first hour
* St Leonards Road – currently 10p for first 30 minutes
* Central area (Park Street, Victoria Street, Datchet Road, Farm Yard, Sheet Street and Thames Side) – currently 30p for first hour
* Residential Roads 1 (Alexandra Road, Claremont Road, Devereux Road, Dorset Road, Grove Road, Helena Road, St Leonards Avenue and St Mark’s Road – currently 10p for first hour
* Residential Roads 2 (Albert Street, Alma Road, Beaumont Road, Bexley Street, Clarence Street, Duke Street, Fawcett Road, Oxford Road, Queens Road, St Leonards Road, Vansittart Road – currently 10p for first hour.

Outer zone business parking
A six-month pilot scheme from August 1 to make available a total of 65 spaces at:

* Alma Road
* Clarence Road
* Frances Road.

Outer zone business permits would be valid from 8am to 6pm (maximum of three per business) with incremental charges - £450 per year for the first permit, £500 for the second and £550 for the third). Six-month permits would be issued to cover the pilot period and then extended if the permits were to be introduced on a longer-term basis.

The outer zone pilot proposal is a direct result of consultation with Windsor and District Chamber of Commerce. It would supplement the existing four-hour business permit parking scheme, which allows one permit per business for four hours of parking at Datchet Road, Farm Yard, Park Street, Sheet Street, Thames Side, Victoria Street, St Leonard’s Road and Alexandra Road.

Cllr Rayner thanked the Windsor and Maidenhead chamber members for their input and explained that the effectiveness of the pilot scheme would be monitored over the six months with a view to making it permanent if it proved successful. He looked forward to getting the views of his fellow councillors at the overview and scrutiny and cabinet meetings.

The Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead