'˜Funds should be spent on park-and-ride,' Chichester Society says

The society is one of a small group of consultees, and said it welcomed a ‘wide remit that looks beyond just parking to the question of travel patterns more generally’.

“In the short term, the society is supportive of the idea of using residential spaces, which are currently under-used during the daytime, in order to accommodate parking for commuters and visitors,” it said in a statement.

“This seems to be a ‘no-brainer’ provided that, as suggested in the audit, such outsider parking spaces can indeed be inserted without inconveniencing residents.”

The society added that not all roads suggested in the audit were suitable, that some of the proposed changes ‘would impact adversely on walking and cycling’, and ‘we are very likely on the cusp of major changes in travel patterns’.

“This means that, looking to the longer term, it would be advisable to see what develops before taking any irreversible action,” it suggested.

The group is predicting future transport trends like autonomous vehicles, lightweight ‘pods’ and ‘platooning’ cars and freight – clusters of self-driving vehicles travelling safely in a line at high speeds.

It said this means the amount of ‘outsider parking’ on streets is likely to be less than the audit envisages, meaning there is a ‘more pressing need than the audit suggests to look at park-and-ride’ and divert funding there.

No precipitate action should be taken to build on existing car parks, the society adds, because it’s unclear if traffic will increase, and any building on ‘cornerstone’ car parks should be residential, not commercial.

The consultation closes on October 31.

See the audit proposals and have your say here

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