Enough car parking spaces in Derby city centre insists councillor after 'serious situation' warning

An image of a car park in Derby city centre
-Credit:Derby Telegraph


A leading Derby councillor insists there are enough parking spaces in the city centre amid concerns of a “serious situation” developing. Last year concerns were expressed about the number of parking spaces in the city centre at a Derby City Council regeneration scrutiny meeting, when councillors were told the Assembly Rooms car park would be closing as part of the Assembly Rooms demolition.

Weeks later it transpired that the demolition of the Market Place building was put on hold – however the car park remained closed, leaving visitors having to park elsewhere. Mickleover Conservative councillor Matthew Holmes at the time called on the council to “act quickly” ahead of the opening of the Becketwell Arena which is set to bring in thousands of new visitors when it opens later this year.

He said: “Time is ticking. We could be in a serious situation where people visiting Derby’s new arena is a nightmare because you can’t park anywhere or can’t park close to it.”

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It was reported last month that approximately 1,500 parking spaces had disappeared in the city centre. This included the closure of the multi-storey Riverside car park in 2023, which took away 830 spaces.

When asked about these concerns in July, Councillor Carmel Swan, cabinet member for transport, said the authority was “in the process of developing a new parking strategy that will provide the appropriate quantity and quality of parking spaces in the city."

More than six months on, Councillor Swan says the work remains ongoing and will form part of the city’s next Local Transport Plan. The councillor said in an update that the strategy “will be fit for the future of the city centre” but said there is a “daily surplus” of spaces currently.

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The councillor said: “The revision of the parking strategy is a continuing piece of work which needs to consider other areas of work, including planning policies, climate change, and city vibrancy. It is not a stand-alone piece.

“The strategy will be fit for the future of the city centre and will be shaped by the Local Transport Plan, which will be a regional plan. Derby city centre has a daily surplus of parking spaces available, therefore, the strategy is not seeking to total the number of spaces.

"The location of the spaces may be changed to reflect the changing nature of the city centre. Public parking will most likely form part of the consultation processes in relation to wider strategies, such as the Local Transport plan and other proposals for the city centre.”

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