Call to bring back scrapped park and ride scheme

Worcestershire County Council scrapped the scheme in 2014 in an attempt to save £25m

A decade since the closure of a city's park and ride scheme, calls are being made for the service to return.

The park and ride site at Perdiswell, Worcester, was scrapped in 2014 as part of £1.6m worth of cost-cutting measures by Worcestershire County Council.

Bringing it back would ease congestion in the city centre and have a “significant impact” on pollution, councillors said.

In a motion being put before the county council next week, Green and Independent representatives said the decision deserved to be revisited.

The motion from six councillors claims air pollution monitors show where the air quality in Worcester exceeds safe levels as more vehicles use the city's roads.

"More cars driving into Worcester will only worsen congestion and air quality. Building more roads is not the answer," they said.

“Giving people a viable alternative to driving into the centre of Worcester is a key part of the solution."

The councillors said park and ride schemes were used in “nearly all similar-sized cities in the country”.

They want the county council to produce a report within six months looking at the benefits of a new service for Worcester.

Their idea is that the report will identify potential sites in the north, west and south-east of the city.