TEN years since the closure of Worcester’s park and ride scheme, calls are being made for its return.
Councillors said it would ease congestion in the city centre and have a “significant impact” on pollution.
The park and ride site at Perdiswell was scrapped in 2014 as part of £1.6 million worth of cost-cutting measures by Worcestershire County Council.
But in a motion being put before the council next week, Green and independent councillors say it’s time to revisit the idea.
They say in the decade since the Perdiswell site closed, “congestion in Worcester has increased”.
“Real-time air pollution monitors show where the air quality in Worcester exceeds safe levels. The number of vehicles on our roads continues to increase,” says the motion, which is in the names of councillors Matt Jenkins, Martin Allen, Malcolm Victory, Tom Wells, Natalie McVey and Andrew Cross.
“Housebuilding on the outskirts of Worcester and elsewhere across the county is increasing, with many new developments forcing residents to be reliant on private motor cars.
“More cars driving into Worcester will only worsen congestion and air quality. Building more roads is not the answer.
“Giving people a viable alternative to driving into the centre of Worcester is a key part of the solution.”
The councillors say park and ride is used in “nearly all similar sized cities in the country”.
They say between 2002 and 2005 the Perdiswell service had an average of 130,000 cars.
“For the first three years of operation, before changes to the service reduced usage, the park-and-ride was considered a success, being heavily used at a small cost to the council.
“This site was meant to be the first of three sites, the other two being to the west and east of the city.
“Three sites removing hundreds of thousands of cars off the roads in Worcester would have a significant impact on congestion and pollution.”
The councillors are calling on highways chief Marc Bayliss to produce a report within six months looking at the benefits of a new park and ride for Worcester.
The idea is that the report would identify potential sites in the north, west and south-east of the city.
Suggestions include using park and ride sites for overnight HGV parking.