Midsomer Norton locals have accused Bath & North East Somerset Council of running a “rigged and undemocratic” consultation on its plan to get rid of their free car parking.
The town’s South Road car park is currently free, but the council plans to start charging people to park there, on the same basis as the “emissions based charges” people pay in Bath’s car parks.
The plan, which will also see charges introduced in Radstock’s free Church Street and Waterloo Road car parks among other price increases across the district, is currently open for public consultation.
But the survey has been panned by locals as “rigged”. Local councillor Shaun Hughes (Midsomer Norton North, Independent) said: “It feels like it’s designed to lead you down a path where at the end of it you have effectively agreed.”
Where the consultation asks how long people should be able to park for free in Midsomer Norton or Radstock they are only able to select from options for: “no free parking,” “up to 30 mins,” “one hour,” or “two hours” — with no option to say parking should remain totally free.
There is an option to explain your choice, in which one Midsomer Norton local wrote: “This survey is rigged and undemocratic because there is no option for free parking. I cannot move on unless I make a decision about something I totally disagree with.”
Mr Hughes added: “To complete the questionnaire you have basically got to agree that parking charges should be there. I’m inundated at the moment from residents complaining about it.”
An option on another question does allow you to say you “fully oppose” the plan for parking charges in the towns.
But another question, which asks how often people park in car parks in different areas, has “about once a week” as the most frequent option. But many people use the cars daily — for which there is no option on the survey.
One local business owner told the Local Democracy Reporting Service in January she has no parking for her business and relies on the car park. She said she may have to close her business without the free parking.
Mr Hughes said: “They may as well have done a survey that said do you want parking charges? A) Yes and B) Yes.”
But, in an email to Mr Hughes, a council officer stated: “Due to the complexity of the proposals the online feedback form is separated into specific questions which is designed to help respondents provide exact feedback for each proposal, as well as any additional information they feel is appropriate.
“This feedback form has been designed in consultation with other council services to ensure that the questions remain neutral so that responses reflect respondent own views.”
On the question about how long people should be able to park for free for, the officer added: “This question in included to find out from respondents how long a period of free parking they would like to see should the proposals be implemented.
“To add an option for no parking charges here may introduce confusion as the question of their support to the proposal of charges themselves is asked in an earlier question.”
On the question about frequency of using the car parks, they said: “The aim here is to get a broad understanding of typical frequency and location and how this might reflect choices, rather than to record accurately the unique habits of individuals.”
Under the plans, parking at the car parks would be free for the first half hour. Two hours parking would cost 80p for electric vehicles and the least polluting non-diesel cars, but diesel cars and cars producing higher carbon emissions will be charged extra — with two hours’ parking costing the most polluting diesel cars 50p more. The charges would apply from 8am to 6pm Monday to Saturday.
Pay and display machines look up a vehicle’s emissions from the DVLA and charge based on how much carbon is emitted or, if this information is not available, the capacity of the engine. The proposed charges would come into force in October and go up again in October 2025.
Emissions based parking was first introduced in car parks in Bath in September 2023, intending to tackle air quality issues in the city.
But Mr Hughes said there was no evidence of such air quality issues in the Midsomer Norton area and told a meeting of the council on 18th July that rolling out the policy to Midsomer Norton would be “a tax on the poor”.
Ending free parking in the Midsomer Norton and Radstock car parks is part of a wider set of updates to parking charges through which the council hopes to make £195,000 a year.
This will also see emissions based charges out to all on street pay and display locations in Bath, all council car parks in Keynsham, the Shallows car park at the Saltford beauty spot, and hotel parking permits.
Current car parking prices in Bath will also go up under the plans. The plans will also mean motorbikes and scooters will need to pay to park the first time.
The consultation on the plans runs until 8th August.
Announcing the consultation, the council’s cabinet member for transport Manda Rigby said: “Our aim is to improve air quality, reduce congestion and encourage other ways to travel across Bath and North East Somerset and these proposals would be another step in the right direction to achieve this.
“We know the effect pollutants from vehicle emissions have, and this is one of a number of policies we’ve implemented to improve air quality and encourage more people to use sustainable transport, like Bath’s Clean Air Zone and our liveable neighbourhoods.”
John Wimperis, Local Democracy Reporter
