Courier joins Bid to back free parking
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More parking charges could be introduced at council car park – see www.inverness-courier.co.uk
"I welcome any suggestions from Bid that they want to put forward and I’m working with officers at the very highest level to see what might be possible," she said.
Inverness Provost Helen Carmichael did not rule out backing the proposals.
"We see this as a major marketing push to help businesses and the feedback we’re getting is that it’s welcomed by the public in that they feel businesses are trying to look after them."
Inverness Bid manager Mike Smith, who has asked the council to consider the changes, said: "We’ve had really good feedback from businesses and the public to our call for a review, particularly the 15 minutes’ free parking.
Chairman of Perth Traders Association, Keith Fergie, said last week that it is the flexibility of the free parking system – letting drivers move from space to space across the city centre, with short stops in places most convenient for them – that his members believe has made a significant difference there.
As the Courier has also recently highlighted, Inverness city centre is currently blighted by dozens of empty shop units – around 30 at the last count, encompassing key areas including High Street, Union Street, Church Street, the Eastgate Centre and the Victorian Market.
Mr Hendry added that any trial should be properly evaluated to judge whether it adds value to the city.
"Bid represents the voice of the city centre, and they have been calling for this type of support for some time, therefore their experiment should be given a try."
Our campaign has already attracted the backing of Inverness MP Drew Hendry, who said: "It is vital to have a balanced view on how to take the city centre forward, and that includes listening to traders in the city.
As we reported on Friday, and also in our Highland News sister paper, Bid believes offering drivers up to 15 minutes of free parking in on-street and council-owned car parks could bring real benefits in terms of the number of people making the city their destination of choice for shopping and leisure.
Following a plea by Inverness Business Improvement District (Bid) last week for a more creative approach to parking in Inverness we are asking Highland Council to Park the Charges and give serious thought to trying a policy that traders in Perth say has already reaped benefits there.
THE Inverness Courier is backing a drive to trial short-term free parking in the centre of the Highland capital.
