Warminster Parking Partnership. As of the 1st of July 2023, Warminster Community Hub will no longer be a part of the Warminster Parking Partnership. This means it can no longer be used as a source to refund parking tickets.
The partnership was established so that shoppers using local businesses can obtain a refund for up to two hours parking. The Hub is a non-profit organisation that does not use or process transactions, therefore it is not financially sustainable for them to contribute to the scheme.
Thank you for understanding. This scheme was set up to promote local businesses and shops. The Hub is a valid community resources, but due to their service being exclusively information based, it is not viable for them to continue participating.
Janet Papworth said: “I am one of the volunteers at the Hub. We want to help our local community. Refunding parking tickets has been challenging recently as we often run out of coins. We hope that everyone will understand and continue to visit us for information about Warminster and surrounding areas.”
Warminster Town Council have issued the following press release:
Welcome for better parking enforcement in Warminster.
Warminster Town Councillors have welcomed news that extra resources will be put into parking enforcement in Wiltshire.
Parking enforcement is the responsibility of Wiltshire Council. Unfortunately, during much of last year considerable demand was placed on Civil Enforcement Officers due to sickness and recruitment problems. This meant that although the area was regularly checked, it wasn’t as often as councillors wished.
The good news is Wiltshire Council have confirmed that: They are in the process of training new staff and will have a full complement in due course. The intention is that Warminster will be patrolled on a daily basis. Priority will be given to busy areas such as the town centre and car parks. Even the quieter locations within the town will receive visits.
Chairman of the Town Development Committee, Councillor Rob Fryer said: “Most parking is done responsibly and in compliance with legal requirements. However, people should be aware vehicles breaking regulations by for example parking on double yellow lines can be moved on or issued with a penalty notice. Town councillors have agreed to liaise with Wiltshire Council to keep them informed about any hot spots for poor parking so they can take appropriate action.”
Some additional colour is now visible in the Central Car Park area of Warminster ~ double yellow lines have now been painted on both sides of the stretch of road between the Avenue Surgery and Warminster Library. This has been done following complaints from the public about cars parking here, causing inconvenience to surgery patients, in taxis or cars, trying to get in and out of the Avenue Surgery car park. Bottle-necking problems had also been created by the parked cars on the sides of the road, especially for lorries delivering to the stores at Three Horse Shoes Walk, such as Iceland and Superdrug.
But the addition of the yellow lines was still making for divided opinions today. One lady, surveying the new road markings, said: “I’m glad about this. It’s about time this was done. The other day an Iceland lorry couldn’t get through and caused a tailback of cars behind out into Station Road. No cars could get in and out of the Central Car Park.” But a man stood alongside the woman, said: “That was very handy for parking for those of us who don’t want to pay the car park charges. I shall be measuring the lines and carefully looking at any signage to see if what they have done is legal and binding.”
Photographs of the new yellow lines, taken by Danny Howell, today:
You know trade is slow in Warminster when you walk into a shop, as I did at lunchtime, and find it only lit by daylight because the light bulbs are turned off. The shopkeeper then turned the lights on, openly telling me and two other customers: “I only put the lights on when people come in and I turn them off when the customers leave.” This had nothing to do with being energy friendly for the planet or the environment. The shopkeeper said: “Things have been bad and have been getting worse since car parking charges were introduced in Warminster and the pavements were widened which did away with much of the on-street parking. Turning the lights off saves the cost of running a shop where the number of items sold is getting less, thanks to less customers, thanks to no-one wanting to pay to park. My customers are not interested in the parking scheme. They would rather drive to another town.”
Some of the readers of dannyhowell.net are mentioning a problem caused by cars being parked on the road, on most weekdays, outside the Avenue Surgery in the Central Car Park, Warminster.
They say these cars are obstructing the vision of motorists when they pull out of the Avenue Surgery Car Park.
They reckon there could be a nasty collision here.
Particularly, as some drivers have to back their vehicles out of the Surgery car park at busy times.
And they say it is also a danger to those on foot crossing the road between the Surgery and the Central Car Park.
One person, worried about the situation, said: “I thought it was an offence to park within so many yards of a junction. So, why don’t the police do something about it? After all, the Police Station is very close; have the police not noticed what is happening?”
These photographs were taken by Danny Howell on the morning of Monday 22nd April 2013.
A problem with car parking at Plants Green, Warminster, was discussed by Warminster Town Councillors at a meeting of the Town Development Committee, held at the Civic Centre,  yesterday evening (Monday 26th November 2012).
Gordon MacDonald, of 6 Plants Green, Warminster, in a letter to the Town Clerk Ms. Heather Abernethie, dated 19th October 2012, wrote: “Dear Ms. Abernethy [sic]. Ref: Extension of Yellow Lines. Parking on the road outside Nos.4 and 6 Plants Green and directly opposite the entrance to Chelwood Court has become noticeably more frequent of late and it is unwise and more than a little dangerous because of the ‘S’ bend configuration of Plants Green at this particular point. You will see from the photos I have enclosed that the view both ‘up’ and ‘down’ is not clear. Would it be possible to discourage parking in this particular area in some way to prevent what could be a nasty accident. Thank you for your consideration. I regret any inconvenience.”
Rob Fryer (Mayor of Warminster) told the meeting he had visited Plants Green that morning and confirmed that cars are parking on the road in front of Mr. MacDonald’s property. It seems that parking charges for the public car parks in Warminster are forcing some motorists to use side streets for parking when they come into Warminster to work or shop.Â
Chris Montagu, a co-opted member of the Committee from Warminster Civic Trust, said he often had to visit Chelwood Court and was aware of the problem. Tony Nicklin, chairing the meeting, said nearly all of the road at Plants Green was narrow and perhaps would benefit from yellow lines all the way along.Â
Andrew Davis spoke against the addition of yellow lines at Plants Green. He said “If we put yellow lines one side of the road, people will just park on the other side of the road.” He went on to say despite the Council requesting and being granted yellow lines last year and at the beginning of this year, for other streets in Warminster, these yellow lines have still not been painted. It seems the bad weather of 2012 has considerably delayed the process. Andrew Davis said “If we do request yellow lines for Plants Green it will be at least 18 months before they materialise.”Â
Andrew Davis went on to say that yellow lines would only create a new problem at Plants Green. He thought that parked cars were a good traffic calming measure. Yellow lines preventing car parking, he reckoned, could make for a lethal situation at the bend in Plants Green.”Â
Councillors seemed unsure of the best course of action to deal with the problem raised by Mr. MacDonald. Chris March then suggested that the Council seek professional advice on the matter. “So that they can tell us yellow lines are needed,” retorted Andrew Davis. “No, no,” said Councillor March, “We will ask for professional advice and then we can decide what has to be done.”
I would like to make a suggestion for improving, maybe, the plight of the traders at High Street, Warminster. They are obviously suffering because of the car parking charges at the Western Car Park. There is in the Close, outside the building used as the Youth Centre, a taxi rank with spaces for four or five taxis. No taxis use it and I can’t remember when they last did. It’s been redundant for years.
Wouldn’t it be beneficial if the spaces could be allocated for public on-street parking, say for a limited period of an hour during the day time, with no waiting limit after say 6.00 p.m. This would give a few more motorists who need to call at the High Street somewhere to park.
It would be very handy for those who need to visit the Athenaeum or the dentist, or any of the businesses in the High Street like the restaurant or the ironmonger’s. The parking bays could even be extended a short distance, making spaces for six cars.
I’m sure my suggestion for public parking in this part of the Close would meet with the approval of High Street traders, and presumably the taxi proprietors wouldn’t mind as they obviously prefer to use the more prominent taxi rank at Station Road.
The little-used taxi rank in The Close, Warminster. Photographed by Danny Howell during August 2004.
