Car Park Study
1. THE TASK
Transport for Leisure Ltd. (TFL) has been contracted by the Malvern Hills Conservators (MHC) and Malvern Hills Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty Partnership, and with financial support from the Countryside Agency, to undertake a short study of issues relating to the management of the Conservators' eight main car parks within the AONB.
These eight car parks are situated at the following locations:
- North Quarry
- West of England
- Beacon Road
- Earnslaw Quarry
- Gardiners Quarry
- Black Hill
- British Camp
- Hollybush
In addition TFL has been asked to look at the whole issue of parking on Castlemorton Common.
There are an estimated 600 parking places in these car parks, which generate an income for the Conservators of between £70,000 and £80,000 per annum, a sizeable proportion of the MHC's total income. This income also represents a significant "visitor payback" by which visitors (as well as the local community) contribute to the work of the MHC, and thereby to the conservation of the Malvern Hills AONB.
The study asks for advice on five main areas of concern. These are:
- Car Park Pricing Policy
- Enforcement Policy
- Design of Car Parks
- Servicing Car Parks
- The specific issues relating to parking on Castlemorton Common.
The detailed brief is attached to this report as Appendix Three.
TFL's response to the brief is in four sections.
The first is a brief analysis of the policy context, mainly derived from the Malvern Hills AONB Management Plan of 1996, and the Malvern Hill Conservators Management Plan 2000-2005 for the land managed by the Malvern Hills Conservators. This is supplemented by a number of key documents, notably the Malvern Hills AONB, Malvern and Ledbury Area Tourism Economic Impact Assessment 1998/99, the Malvern Hills Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty Visitor Survey 1999-2000 and the Malvern Hills AONB Sustainable Tourism Strategy, (all work commissioned by the Heart of England Tourist Board) and a short report on the car parks on the Hills managed by MHC by Karspace Management Limited (2001).
It is also worth mentioning in this context the report undertaken in 1995 by Transport for Leisure for the Countryside Commission and the former Hereford && Worcestershire County Council, Green Networks across the Malvern Hills. This looked at a wide range of issues including traffic and transport issues. This report is referred to in the AONB Management Plan, and many of its key recommendation, including the development of the Hills Hopper, were incorporated in the 1996 AONB Management Plan.
This is followed by a short suggested visitor and traffic management strategic overview, based on the above desk study, but supplemented by site visits on March 18th,19th and 24th 2002, as well by as informal discussions with MHC and MH AONB staff.
The third section responds to each of the key questions in detail set out in the brief in the light of this overview.
The next section looks at each of the MHC operated car parks in turn, with reference to the satellite car parks also in MHC or public ownership in the vicinity, and suggests, for each of them, priorities for action, where possible with outline costings.
The final section is an Action Summary, looking at a possible five year delivery timescale, and suggesting possible external funding sources including the Herefordshire and the Worcestershire Local Transport Plans.
Car park study index
