Forestry England considers car park charges in New Forest. Meeting with park authority discusses funding issues.
Many car parks are in popular spots. Wilverley Enclosure is one, and Bolton’s Bench in Lyndhurst is another. Forestry England owns and takes care of these lots. They considered closing some lots back in 2022.
Forestry England will tell park members their plans at a private meeting. People worry charges cause roadside parking. Forestry England’s funding from the government went down. Now, they can’t pay to keep up the 130 car parks.
These lots sit on Crown lands inside the national park. Harrison said the park does not own any lots, so it would not get money from parking fees. He said the park has its own money problems. Many car park conditions are poor right now. They have ruts and potholes needed to be fixed, and charge money could help fix these.
However, charges may upset locals, as they visit the forest a lot. He does not want more roadside parking. He wants locals to get discounted parking, which would work like the council’s parking clock.
A Forestry England person spoke and said they want to manage the large number of visitors while also raising money. These plans include charging in some places. Also, their costs increased a lot. Materials and services cost more now. They need these to keep up the 130 car parks.
Bad weather made things worse too, as rain damaged the car park surfaces. Only about 10% of their money comes from the government. They must raise the rest. This money pays for car parks and trails, and for all their work.
They need a stable plan to fund the car parks. This helps them keep up all the lots. They are working with other groups in the forest. They will find ways to fund this work and will share more information soon.