Council’s special parking offer designed to be a winter shopper winner
Temporary car parking deal in East Devon will run for five months from 1 November 2017 to 31 March 2018
Anyone planning to start their Christmas shopping early will be able to take advantage of East Devon District Council’s five-month winter parking special offer, which starts on 1 November 2017 and runs until 31 March 2018. The daily parking tariff of £2 offers unbeatable value as it enables shoppers to take their time when making purchases, as the ticket will cover them for the entire day, from whatever time they choose to arrive until midnight.
The revised timing is a departure from the council’s usual policy of not starting the parking offer until 10am. The council has previously been concerned that there was a risk that some of its prime car parks could become blocked by commuters, but this year it wanted to be as generous as possible and is confident that this simple offer will work well.
East Devon’s temporary tariff will not only support local shops over the run-up to Christmas, but will also help boost trade during the traditionally quieter months of January and February. It won’t just be shops that benefit either, the all-day ticket will, it is hoped, encourage people to use local cafes, restaurants and pubs and to linger longer over a cup of coffee or a meal.
The special offer tickets are available only in East Devon District Council’s 41 pay and display car parks, but does exclude Parkmobile payments and Permit Holders.
Customers should not be concerned if they notice that their ticket may not have an expiry time of midnight printed on it. Parking officers will be checking that the £2 has been paid, which will make the ticket valid for the rest of that day.
Tony McCollum, the chairman of Honiton Chamber of Commerce and Industry, welcomed the extended parking offer and said: “The offer has been a tremendous success over the past two years across East Devon. I know that traders in my local town of Honiton really benefited from the reduced parking price, which enabled shoppers to spend longer in shops and cafes. The five month reduced tariff will be a real bonus for both locals and visitors and will encourage more people to come out and spend their money. We are immensely grateful to the council for supporting East Devon businesses with this very generous car parking concession.”
Councillor Tom Wright, East Devon District Council’s portfolio holder for the environment, said: “We want to support businesses in all of our town and village high streets as much as we can through the quieter winter months. All the feedback we have received from last year’s parking offer showed that it was a great success. And the really good news is that not only is the price of all day parking now just £2. You can also use the same ticket in any other East Devon pay and display car park on that day so why not take a tour around to discover something different on offer.
“The ticket will be valid right up until midnight in all of our pay and display car parks in Exmouth, Seaton, Sidmouth, Budleigh Salterton, Beer, Axminster, Honiton, Ottery St Mary, Lympstone or Colyton. We know it’s a tough time for towns, so we want to do all we can to help traders and the district’s Chambers of Commerce. It will be interesting to see how the five month concession affects trade, but first I’d like to thank all our customers who took advantage of our previous offers – your custom was a big boost to the local economy.”
