County's parking charges rise, some by 50%

The new car parking charges came into effect on Monday

The cost of parking in Shropshire has gone up, with some hourly rates rising by 50%.

They are the first increases introduced by Shropshire Council since 2022 and the authority said funds raised would be spent on the upkeep of existing car parks, supporting improvements to roads, and public transport.

The changes are the first stage of a wider review into parking that was agreed by the council, last December, with two county car parks seeing their hourly rate rise from 80p to £120, or a 50% increase.

On-street parking has seen some of the biggest changes, with the cost in Shrewsbury rising from £2.80 per hour to £3.60 and the cost in Ludlow increasing from £2 an hour to £2.80, a jump of 40%.

The council said the increase to Shrewsbury's on-street parking was "justified by the need to manage very high demand".

Car parks in what the council describes as "band 3" - such as Oswestry's Festival Square and Shrewsbury's St Julians Friars - rose to £1.40 per hour from £1.20 per hour.

Parking in a band 4 car park - including Frankwell Riverside in Shrewsbury and Back Lane in Much Wenlock - now costs £1.20 per hour, up from 80p per hour - a rise of 50%.

Band 5 car parks - including Frogmore Road in Market Drayton and Abbey Foregate in Shrewsbury - went up from 60p per hour to 70p per hour.

Some council car parks in band 6, such as Smithfield in Ludlow and Crossways in Church Stretton, have not increased to "support the viability of smaller town centres", the council said.

Other car parks, which are currently free, remain so, the council confirmed.