Build a park and ride for Beverley now rather than waiting years for hundreds more houses to be built, Lib Dems say

Opposition Liberal Democrats are pushing for work on a park and ride in Beverley to start now.
Beverley's Market Cross bandstand in Saturday Market  - with St Mary's Church in the background Picture: Terry CarrottBeverley's Market Cross bandstand in Saturday Market  - with St Mary's Church in the background Picture: Terry Carrott
Beverley's Market Cross bandstand in Saturday Market - with St Mary's Church in the background Picture: Terry Carrott

As part of their alternative budget proposals they want to use £4m of East Riding Council future reserves to get started on the scheme on the southern bypass, where nearly 2,000 homes will be built in the coming years.

Coun Denis Healy, ward councillor in St Mary's ward, and deputy leader of the opposition said the streets of Beverley are "already choking" with parking problems.

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He said developers who are building homes on the southern bypass have accepted they will eventually pay for the park and ride, but that depends on the sale of new homes, and "no one can say" when that would be.

He said: "The Conservative-led council is desperate to cover Beverley with more housing, but has always been reluctant to put the infrastructure such as the park and ride in place to cope with the houses and the extra people using their cars to visit the town centre.

"We have been talking about a park and ride for the last four years and every time we ask for the money to be brought forward out of the reserves it never happens.

"They are saying at some indeterminate point in the future we will build a park and ride. But no one can say when that end game will be.

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"Meanwhile parking problems in the town will just get worse.

"Our proposal seeks to bring forward £4m from the council's future reserves so that work can start now, rather than in several years' time."

However Coun Mike Stathers, deputy leader of the council, said the Lib Dems plans would leave them with "a park and ride with no passengers and empty buses".

He said it was decided some time ago to bring forward the building of the park and ride to the end of Phase One.

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It will be built, he said, using council funds with the money, recovered from the developers as part of a legal agreement.

Coun Stathers said: “The argument at the time was to build a park and ride before we had people to use it would be a nonsense and that remains the case.

"If there's a problem with traffic in Beverley, it's not going to be tackled with a park and ride out of town.

"If you do what the Lib Dems want to do you’d end up with a park and ride with no passengers and empty buses.”

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Nearly 190 acres was allocated for housing as part of East Riding Council’s masterplan in 2015.

The aim is to build around 1,800 homes by 2029, as the largest contribution towards a national planning requirement to provide 3,300 new homes in Beverley.

The council was contacted for a comment.

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