City car park to stay open all hours after trial

A Wolverhampton car park will continue to operate around the clock following a trial of the new hours.

The 24-7 opening for the council's Civic Centre car park started in December, following an upgrade of the site.

The council said the trial had proved a success, with hundreds of people taking advantage of parking on Sundays and into the night on weeknights and weekends.

Previously, the car park operated Monday to Saturday from 07:00-20:00 GMT, with extended hours for certain events and limited Sunday opening.

The car park is near University of Wolverhampton at The Halls, and serves thousands of people each year, including concert goers and Wolves fans.

A ticketless automatic number plate recognition system has also been introduced, which the council said offered a quicker entry and exit without the need to download an app.

The introduction of new opening hours followed consultation with local businesses and forms part of the council's night-time economy strategy.

Councillor Chris Burden said: "We want Wolverhampton to be a place that people can visit and enjoy at any time of day and having a 24-7 car park offer is an important part of this.

"This is about creating a lively, safe and accessible city centre that benefits everyone."

Data from the new opening hours will be kept under review and also help to inform a wider car parking strategy being developed for the city centre.

Councillor Qaiser Azeem said: "Providing modern, safe and secure parking facilities is essential to Wolverhampton's ongoing development, and supports the major investment taking place in the city centre."

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