University to oust free parking for locals

The University of Lincoln will charge Lincoln residents for using its parking facilities from June. The car parking charges for staff and members of the public will be enforced at all campuses.

Access for staff and authorised visitors using the university’s car park between 6am and 4.30pm will remain unchanged. Students will continue to use the car park free of charge between 4.30pm and 3am on weekdays and between 6am and 3am at weekends.

However, students will need to display a free permit from June in order to distinguish student cars from those belonging to the public. Details on how to obtain these free permits would be disclosed shortly, according to an email sent to all students.

The University of Lincoln claims charging for the car parks will help offset the cost of running them, while playing a part in their plans to encourage staff and visitors to reduce their carbon footprint and travel more healthily wherever possible.

The charges for public and staff parking has not been set yet, but they will be “very competitive”, the university said.

“The revenue received from charging for car parking at the university will contribute towards the cost of security and the physical maintenance of the car parks,” said Richard Merryweather, the head of commercial facilities.

It is claimed that the decision to introduce car parking charges for staff and members of the public comes after consultation with university staff, and showed that there was support for a green transport travel plan. “In the future, following further work by our sustainable transport group, it is envisaged that the revenue will also help to support green travel initiatives,” Merryweather added.

In June 2009, the University of Lincoln offered a 25% reduction in parking fees at the NCP multi-storey car park, at the rear of Wigford House/British Heart Foundation (Brayford Street). A ticket machine used in this scheme is installed on campus, inside the Engine Shed on the ground floor (Tower Bar).