I visited Shrewsbury on the day new higher parking fees came into force – here’s what I found
To leave your car on a street in Shrewsbury town centre now costs £3.60 an hour (up from £2.80). Parking in Band 2 car parks, including Raven Meadow, the Quarry Fitness Centre and St Austins Street, are now £2.80 an hour instead of £2, while Band 3 car parks, such as Frankwell Main, Quay and Riverside, now cost £1.20 an hour, an increase of 40p.
Smaller towns have also seen their parking fees increased, with traders in Ludlow and the town council believing the increases are too high.
On-street parking now costs £2.80 an hour, with Glenn Rowles, who runs an art gallery in Mill Street, previously telling the Local Democracy Reporting Service there should be a free hour of parking for locals to do their shopping.
Shropshire Council says the measures are necessary to provide additional revenue which will be directly reinvested into maintenance and improvements to the county’s transport services, and support upgrading the local roads.
On Monday afternoon (November 3), I popped into Shrewsbury to see what the car parks were like on the day the increases came into force.
On the way into the town, I stopped at the Meole Brace Park & Ride to see if many people were using buses as an alternative, something Shropshire Council is keen to promote.
It now costs £1.80 to park for 30 minutes in Mardol, Shrewsbury. Picture: LDRS
Running every 12 minutes with a return ticket costing just £2, it is definitely good value for money, but the car park had plenty of empty spaces, suggesting that maybe some tourists were using the service at that time, rather than locals. That will probably increase as Christmas approaches.
Parking in the Frankwell Main car park is now £1.20 an hour. Picture: LDRS
I then drove and parked at Frankwell Main, a car park I regularly use when covering council meetings at The Guildhall. Sometimes – especially in the morning – finding a free space can prove difficult. But I had no problem this time, with a sign leading to the car park saying there were 282 places.
The Frankwell Main car park at 5pm on Monday, November 3, 2025. Picture: LDRS
A sign on the payment machine says that Shropshire Council will only issue a penalty charge notice to a vehicle parked after 15 minutes without payment. This, it says, includes a free five-minute parking period along with the statutory grace period, in line with current legislation.
Shrewsbury’s largest car park is Raven Meadows, a multi-storey by the Darwin shopping centre that has seven levels.
The Raven Meadows car park in Shrewsbury. Picture: LDRS
Shropshire Council states that parking is chargeable 24 hours a day at £2.40 an hour. However, a sign says it is only open from 7am to midnight Monday to Saturday, and 9am to 10pm on Sundays and Bank Holidays.
The Raven Meadows car park in Shrewsbury. Picture: LDRS
Liv Gray, from Telford, said she did not know how much she paid for two hours’ of parking due to the “pay on exit” system. She added that she found parking easy, but felt there were were too many pillars, meaning that it was very easy to damage your car.
The Raven Meadows multi-storey car park’s opening hours. Picture: LDRS
Finally, I stopped by Mardol, a street that runs from Mardol Quay to the town centre. The minimum time allowed to park there is 30 minutes, which now costs £1.80.
Parking on streets in Shrewsbury, such as Mardol, now costs £3.60 an hour. Picture: LDRS
One man, who did not wish to be named, paid £2 to park his car so he could go to a meeting. He said the increases discourage people from coming into the town centre, which will impact trade. The next few weeks – especially the nearer we get to Christmas – will be key to see how much of an impact the new fees will have on the local economy.
