Banbury councillor looks to tackle inconsiderate parking with 'residents only' scheme

Inconsiderate parking could soon be banned in several terraced streets near the Banbury town centre.

A new scheme in the works by Banbury Councillor Eddie Reeves would give residents exclusive rights to park their cars outside their homes without fear of inconsiderate parking from commuters and shoppers seeking to avoid parking charges.

Cll Reeves, Oxfordshire county councillor for the Calthorpe area, has pressed for the implementation of a residents’ only parking scheme on residential roads near the town centre to combat inconsiderate parking.

He ran a petition in the autumn of 2020 which received overwhelming support from local people. The petition was presented to Oxfordshire County Council in March last year, and now the first scheme has been designed.

A consultation will begin in the spring with residents' only parking introduced in Crouch Street, Beargarden Road, Westbeech Court and West Bar Street, if local consent is secured.

If successful, the project could be completed by the summer, and used as evidence for further schemes on residential roads near the town centre, and elsewhere in Banbury.

Eddie said: “I have been making the case for better residents parking on roads near the town centre for some time, so I am pleased to see this start to come to fruition.

"As a town centre resident, myself, I understand the importance of these issues to local people.

"I am grateful to all those who added their voices of support to the campaign by signing my petition. I hope this results in better, safer parking for us all and that our area can act as a blueprint for other schemes in Banbury where appropriate.”