Plans for a new-look Alsager 'negated' by car parking charges

By Lyndsey Telford
Any improvements to Alsager town centre would be "negated" by the introduction of car parking charges early next year, residents claim. Those views were included in a report on the result of public consultation on the town centre's future, which was received by Cheshire East Council's Strategic Planning Committee yesterday (Wednesday). The improvement plan aims to "establish a distinctive character for the town centre, create a vital and viable shopping area, provide leisure, cultural and community facilities to ensure that there is easy access to the town and to create a quality public space". Part of Crewe Road could have a line of restaurants and cafés, areas of Lawton Road and Sandbach Road South could have changes to roads and paths, and the Civic Quarter could include a landmark building, along with an improved library building, civic centre and council offices.
But car-parking charges could reduce the benefit of the changes, residents claimed. Glennis Roper said: "In your wisdom you are introducing car park charges in the new year. I feel like most residents that you are going to drive businesses away from Alsager and not encourage people to come here. "It is going to cost at least 50p to visit the library to change a book - that is before you relocate it to somewhere else in Alsager. "As an Alsager resident of nearly 50 years I am extremely concerned and worried about what is going to happen here and I just hope that you are not going to destroy the Alsager that we know and love." Alsager Chamber of Trade secretary John Poulson stated the Cheshire East department behind the town plan should oppose the introduction of car parking charges if it wanted its proposals to be a success. He explained: "I fully support anything that enhances the future of Alsager, but I do feel as other people have said that the chances of this document being a success are negated by the introduction of car parking charges. "Since the meeting in September in the civic centre (to which the public was invited to air their views on the plans), two more businesses have stopped trading in Alsager - Bargain Booze and Living - and no matter what the document says, car park charges will deter residents and visitors from coming to Alsager. "If Spatial Planning wants to see positive results from all the good work they have put into this document they should also oppose the introduction of car park charges." A comment signed by a Mr and Mrs Clare stated that if charges went ahead, drivers would be tempted to park on side streets "taking up half of the kerb". It added: "In Cedar Avenue and Station Road there are many elderly people, some using wheelchairs for example. If vehicles park on the kerb, thus avoiding paying parking charges, then life gets more difficult for the elderly. "Many disabled people who have to use motorised chairs have to drive on the road because of cars or vans obstructing the path." In its response to the consultation comments, a Cheshire East spokesman defended the council's decision to introduce the charges, saying they would ultimately benefit the town. He explained: "Cheshire East Council has made the decision to introduce car parking charges in order to ensure a uniform approach to car park management throughout the borough; to benefit the town centre by removing long-stay parking within the central locations freeing up spaces for shorter stay customers and visitors, to discourage non-essential car use, and encourage the use of more sustainable and healthy forms of travel. "It is not possible for the spatial planning department to amend the decision previously taken by the council in relation to car park charges." The council will set a new date to discuss the consultation comments before moving forward with the town plan.

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