Sheffield Council Considers Immediate Changes to Neepsend Parking Rules After Business Backlash

[SheffieldForum]

Sheffield City Council is considering "immediate changes" to parking rules in the Neepsend district following a heated meeting with local business leaders. The review comes after a petition signed by over 3,500 people protested the installation of double yellow lines and the reduction of parking spaces in the area.

 

Business Concerns Over Parking Changes

 

The meeting, held at the Cutlery Works food hall on Neepsend Lane, was attended by dozens of business owners who voiced concerns that the council is prioritising residential developments at the expense of local firms. Many fear that the loss of parking spaces will negatively impact their businesses and deter customers.

Councillor Ben Miskell, Chair of the Transport, Regeneration, and Climate Policy Committee at Sheffield City Council, acknowledged the concerns raised. “There were some very passionate views expressed during the meeting and myself, along with officers from Sheffield City Council, have listened and will reflect on them moving forward,” he told attendees. “We are considering some immediate changes in response to specific issues raised at the meeting, including amendments to support businesses’ delivery arrangements.”

 

Council’s Stance on Street Safety and Economic Growth

 

Despite the backlash, Councillor Miskell emphasised that improving street safety has historically boosted Sheffield's economy. “Where we’ve seen improvements elsewhere in the city centre to make streets safer, the evidence shows that it has increased footfall and helped to grow the city’s economy,” he explained. “Improvements to the public realm at the Peace Gardens, for example, led to a 35% increase in footfall, delivering a net increase of spending of £4.2 million.”

He also highlighted the success of Kelham Island, which has transformed into one of Europe’s best neighbourhoods, and mentioned plans for further investment to support the delivery of additional homes and commercial spaces in line with the city’s local plan.

 

Next Steps and Reviews

 

The council plans to write to businesses and residents within the next two weeks, outlining how they can apply for parking permits and detailing when the parking scheme will become fully operational. A formal review of the changes in both Kelham and Neepsend will take place after six months of the scheme’s full operation.

 

Sam Chapman, co-chair of the South Yorkshire Transport Forum, part of the Sheffield Chamber of Commerce, commented on the broader impact of safe and welcoming streets: "Making our streets safer and more welcoming is crucial, not just for the well-being of residents but also for the local economy.

Road incidents currently have a negative impact on the UK economy, contributing to a 1.4% drop in GDP. Therefore, responsible management of our streets, including parking, is essential."

 

The meeting was organised by the Sheffield Chamber of Commerce.

[AndrewC]

Where have you got this from @SheffieldForum? This BBC News article from literally yesterday paints a different picture, in terms of the Council's stance (more, 'we're pushing ahead as planned' than 'we doing a u-turn')?

 

Sheffield traders say parking changes causing big drop in trade - BBC News

 

Quote

Ben Miskell, chair of the council's transport committee, said not addressing parking issues was "not the answer".

 

Miskell said concerns raised would be reflected on.

"Doing nothing about parking is not the answer," the councillor told BBC Radio Sheffield on Tuesday.

"In order to grow our economy, we need to sort out our transport, that means tackling congestion and I make no apologies for that."

 

When asked about the impact the work had on small businesses, he said: "I think it's important to say that case study evidence suggests investments in our public spaces like increased pedestrian crossings and making it easier to travel to our district centres can really increase footfall and trading."

 

 

It's always a tough situation because there are always winners and losers, but generally speaking it's clear that Neepsend is headed for Kelham-Island style gentrification and having cars strewn all over every square inch of road (and often pavement) is obviously not going to cut the mustard as the local population of residents and workers grows.

 

I mean, a lot of the new 'parking restrictions' are actually just double-yellows in places you're aren't supposed to park now, i.e.  corners of junctions etc.

 

Also, I've always been less inclined to visit Neepsend (however I've travelled there) because it's unpleasant to walk around, by and large. Busy roads allowing fast cars cutting through the main area (the plans include moving the main through traffic further north), cars parked in places that make it tricky to cross because of bad visibility, and terrible junctions like Rutland Road/Neepsend Lane where no crossing facilities exist at all, prior to these plans.

 

So is my lost business not important?

 

 

P.s. I'm always concerned when I see alcohol-selling establishments talking about badly their business has been hit by parking restrictions...

 

[SheffieldForum]

49 minutes ago, AndrewC said:

Where have you got this from @SheffieldForum? This BBC News article from literally yesterday paints a different picture, in terms of the Council's stance (more, 'we're pushing ahead as planned' than 'we doing a u-turn')?

 

Sheffield traders say parking changes causing big drop in trade - BBC News

 

 

 

It's always a tough situation because there are always winners and losers, but generally speaking it's clear that Neepsend is headed for Kelham-Island style gentrification and having cars strewn all over every square inch of road (and often pavement) is obviously not going to cut the mustard as the local population of residents and workers grows.

 

I mean, a lot of the new 'parking restrictions' are actually just double-yellows in places you're aren't supposed to park now, i.e.  corners of junctions etc.

 

Also, I've always been less inclined to visit Neepsend (however I've travelled there) because it's unpleasant to walk around, by and large. Busy roads allowing fast cars cutting through the main area (the plans include moving the main through traffic further north), cars parked in places that make it tricky to cross because of bad visibility, and terrible junctions like Rutland Road/Neepsend Lane where no crossing facilities exist at all, prior to these plans.

 

So is my lost business not important?

 

 

P.s. I'm always concerned when I see alcohol-selling establishments talking about badly their business has been hit by parking restrictions...

 

It is an amalgamation of sources.

 

I tend to agree with you. The Neepsend end of ‘Kelham Island’ (which everyone seems to call it now anyway) isn’t particularly great to walk around. There are some great venues when you get inside but getting to and between them is awful. That crossroads you speak of is horrendous and I’ve seen so many near misses on there. Hopefully this scheme helps alleviate some of that.

 

And, yes — initially I had the same concerns as you regarding licensed venues (that largely only open on Thursday-Saturday in that area) being concerned about parking. Who is driving to those places (outwith the ones that do food in the daytime, etc)?!

 

However, I have found myself having a lot of sympathy for other businesses — there are barbers and nail salons and coffee shops and even the likes of Kelham Flea antiques place, etc. I do understand why those places may be more concerned about restricting parking.

 

A good argument I’ve seen is that the public transport through the area just isn’t good enough. There’s decent links to various edges of the area (the tram, Shalesmoor, etc), but nothing decent and regular running through it. There’s a clear opportunity for a good bus service — and I would suggest a decent argument for extending the Sheffield Connect free bus through it (again, one of the Sheffield Connect routes runs close to the edge of the area by looping at Millsands, but it would surely make sense in the grand scheme of things to run it through Neepsend if possible — although that would obviously affect frequency on that route).

[HairFarceOne]

Unfortunately, this area is a victim of the "jam tomorrow" philosophy. There are now whole areas of Sheffield that fall into this idea.

Change is not necessarily "bad", but constant work in an area can have an opposite effect to the one intended.

I would like to see areas that have had changes made, then have a rest period of two to three years. This would allow the area to re-energise.

I have lived in Sheffield to see that whilst there are improvements, to infrastructure and transport etc., the constant feeling of being on a building site is also one that drains people.