Rail passengers and local residents might not welcome this news, but GTR has advised us that parking charges are to introduced at both Earlswood and Salfrods Station.
The charges to be introduced at the end of March will apply Monday to Friday between the hours of 4 am and 5 pm. Evenings and weekends will remain free.
GTR said that the money raised from parking charges will support the management and maintenance of the carpark and will help towards investing in parking on the network.
Initially, it was stated the charge to park for a day would be £9.10 at both Earlswood and Salfords. With payment being possible through an app, the ticket machine at the station, or by phone.
This figure was successfully challenged by the RRDRUA and subsequently reduced for Earlswood to £8.30. The price was benchmarked against Horley station – which seemed extremely peculiar given that Merstham/Redhill/Reigate are all significantly closer and also cheaper!
- Redhill Station – All day = £7.15
- Merstham Station – All day = £6.60
- Reigate Station – All day = £5.30
Sadly there was no movement on pricing at Salfrods.
The news comes as both a positive and a negative for users of these stations.
The change from free to paid parking spaces will, of course, be a blow to passengers travelling from these stations who arrive by car. And will only increase the amount of rail travellers parking on local roads in Earlswood where there are no parking restrictions or charges. Around Salfrods residents actions have already resulted in streets near the station being covered in double yellow lines – preventing commuters parking but also residents from using on-street locations outside their homes.
Residents near both of these stations tend to leave cars in the station spaces – something you can spot on a cold winters morning as cars parked at the station have been there all night and are covered in frost. The introduction of parking charges will likely (assuming the parking is enforced) increase the chances of being able to get a parking space at the station.
If you have no choice but to drive to Earlswood or Salfords to park before catching a train – while prices have now been introduced the chances of finding a space will have increased.
Unfortunately, parking provisions for stations in our area are wholely inadequate and overpriced in general. Redhill station is now often full before the majority of peak services have run – and unless you buy one of the limited ‘premium’ parking season tickets, your space is not guaranteed.
If you have to drive to the station and park before catching a train, we don’t recommend parking in an official station carpark. And not to purchase a parking season ticket for the station – as you may end up paying twice – with no guarantee of a space.
The best option is Gloucester Road carpark. Charging is applicable between 8 am and 6 pm with all-day parking costing £6 (which is considerably cheaper than Redhill/Earlswood/Salfords station. At just a 7min walk from the station, it is the best option.
Wow suddenly the realisation is dawning that
1) it costs money to provide parking spaces , and land in Surrey is very expensive, and scarce (a basic tarmac car park costs c.£5000/space to build. Plus land costs. Plus lighting & drainage system for the polluted water)
2) They also cost money to maintain c.£500/year for a basic open car park, c.£1000/year for a multi-level, more for underground (ventilation & fire protection)
3) Build upwards and spaces typically cost £15,000-£22,000 (EACH SPACE) and my top price recorded was Penrith £2.5m for 30 extra spaces – £83,333 per space – amortise that at £6 per day!
4) There is no obligation on the roads authority to provide road space for any parking at all – they only have to provide roads for moving traffic. you want a place to park near your house – you may well need to pay for it
Interesting that prices at present for Redhill seem cheaper than Salfords. A risk perhaps of railheading where people drive to a station with more trains/cheaper fares as with Surbiton vs Hampton Court?
Surbiton actually provides an interesting model. With a project to provide cycle parking, the take-up of cycling steadily increased, with the major savings – not running a car that sits idle for 22 hours per day (RAC suggest c.£5000/yr) & not paying c.£1200/yr for a car park season ticket. in the initial stage 10% of the new cycle users had stopped using a car park space.
Thinking differently might put some alternative perspectives on your ‘problem’. One option that could prove cheaper, might be to plan your mobility to eliminate the car that sits for 9-11 hours in the station car park and 8-12 hours at the house costing you money, and try out a Brompton bike from the hire point. This can also remove the need to pay for onward travel in the Tube, Bus, or taxi in London (a price of £3.50 for 24 hours), plus the elimination of waiting for a connection, and the flexibility if being able to cycle to London Bridge/Blackfriars or Victoria when disruption occurs. With a car club you then only pay when you need a car 24/7 https://www.enterprisecarclub.co.uk/gb/en/programs/regions/south-east-england/redhill.html#plans many can be saving £2000-£3000/year but still drive a new car whenever they want one