TRADERS say profits have soared since free evening parking was introduced on Southend seafront.

Members of the Business Improvement District claim trade is up 30 per cent since the free parking was brought in after 6pm.

Southend Council introduced temporary free parking last year, but made it permanent in February by putting up town centre parking charges to offset the loss in revenue.

The Bid worked with the council to drop the evening charges, as well as introduce 15-minute bays and disabled spaces on the front.

Bid manager Alison Dewey said: “The overall effect has been really constructive. As a direct consequence of the seafront car parking initiatives, our members in that area have reported a 30 per cent increase in trade.

“Of course, there is much more to be done and we certainly can’t rest on our laurels. But these findings show that the Bid was indeed the right way to go.”

Paul Thompson, chairman of Southend Seafront Traders’ Association, said: “Anything that drops parking charges will see a boost in trade. The new cabinet at Southend Council have been really positive in working with traders here.

“It’s a bit early in the season to say, but when the Bid put on their free fireworks nights last October, we saw a big uptake in trade when parking was free.”

But Ron Collier, who runs Beaches Cafe and Bistro, in Marine Parade, said: “I wouldn’t go as far as improving it by 30 per cent, but anything that makes parking free will improve the situation.

“But we need to get more car parking here. That would improve it tremendously, as visitors naturally come to the seafront to look for spaces.

“That’s where the real improvement will be, if the council creates a new seafront car park.”

The BID is also in the process of undertaking a six-week “deep clean” of Southend High Street, ridding the area of the likes of chewing gum.

The BID was formed in 2012 after most businesses in the town centre and wider area voted for a hike in their business rates, which went into a pot of cash designed to improve the area.

 

Our policy has paid off

A SENIOR councillor who led the town centre parking charges hike said the seafront boom had shown the policy had been worth it.

Independent Martin Terry, was the face of the increased charges, as Southend councillor responsible for transport.

The opposition Tory group criticised the plans, claiming they would mean shoppers flocking to the likes of Lakeside. The increased charges are predicted to net the council £500,000 in 2015/16, while removing evening parking fees on the seafront will only set the authority back £245,000.

Councillor Terry said: “It’s win-win all round. Seafront traders have said the free parking has brought a pick-up in trade, and many customers are happy it has helped create an evening economy in Southend.

“The longer people spend in the town, the more money is spent in the local economy, and clearly that is a good thing.”

But his counterpart, Tory James Courtenay, hit back. He said: “I am sure some seafront traders’ profits have increased, but at the expense of other traders.

“The change means one part of the town is subsidising the other.

“I’m not sure it is right we should be helping one set of traders at the expense of others – all businesses are important to Southend.”