Drivers ‘react well’ to parking loss

Press, 12 February 1982, Page 4

Drivers ‘react well’ to parking loss

Christchurch motorists have reacted well to the new City Mall development, says the Ministry of Transport. A Ministry spokesman said yesterday that although 80 central car-parks had been lost because of the development, motorists had seemed to take the loss “in their stride.”

Parking meter wardens had reported no extra problems with motorists parking in one place all day, or double-parking in streets near the development, which is in parts of Cashel Street' and High Street. The spokesman asked motorists not to double-park in Hereford Street because this would increase the danger of head-on collisions.

Since last month, motorists have been forbidden to travel along parts of Cashel Street and High Street because of the mall development, which is planned to be finished about June. Only gdods vehicles are allowed to enter the area and this must be before 11 a.m. and after 4 p.m. Mr G. N. Stevenson, the Christchurch City Council's car-parks superintendent, said" yesterday that central city car-parking would be boosted by 500 spaces. There were short-term plans for an extra 100 spaces, and longterm plans for more than 400 additional spaces. Already an extra 53 casual car-parks are available next to the Lichfield Street park-

ing building, and reserved parks along Lichfield Street are being converted to metered zones.

When the mall opens in June, another 46 parks will be available next to the Don Forbes parking building in Cashel Street.

Long-term plans include boosting the capacity of the Lichfield Street ' parking building from 510 spaces to 700 spaces. As well the priv-ately-owned Cashel Street parking building will by the end of the year have an extra 180 parks, taking its total to 420. Mr • Stevenson said the council had also bought another central city site for car-parking in the future.