The facility will be at the site of the old Ards Leisure Centre
A new Park and Ride scheme has been approved for Newtownards in County Down.
During the August Planning Committee meeting at Ards and North Down Borough Council, elected representatives unanimously agreed an application by Translink for a park and ride facility at lands bounded by William Street, Hardford Link and Corry Street.
The new facility will include 452 spaces, new landscaping, a new cycle shelter building, and a relocation of the existing playpark in the area. The DUP’s Alderman Stephen McIlveen originally proposed a motion for the land to be a Park and Ride in 2017.
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A Park and Ride car park is a parking facility, typically located on the outskirts of a city or urban area, that allows commuters and other travelers to park their vehicles and then use public transportation, like buses or trains, to complete their journey into the city center or other destinations. They are designed to reduce traffic congestion and pollution in city centers.
Ards and North Down Council officers recommended the application for approval at the meeting. There were no third party representations on the application.
Out of all the consultations with statutory bodies, only the Department for Infrastructure Rivers Division gave an objection to the application. They said there would be an “unacceptable combination of depth and velocity in relation to the reservoir inundation area.”
The site is located immediately southwest of the junction of Hardford Link and William Street, on land formerly occupied by the of Ards Leisure Centre. Those buildings have all been cleared by the site but a car park on the southern end of the site is still used by council and Ards Hospital workers.
A council officer said at the Planning Committee the facility would “encourage travel by public transport and reduce reliance on the private car to help tackle growing congestion.”
She added: “The site is well served by main traffic routes, and is accessible by foot, with Newtownards bus station located nearby, 700 metres to the southeast on Regent Street. The current proposal is designed to meet growth in demand from passengers travelling on the important transport corridor from Newtownards to Belfast, also benefitting North Down and Ards Peninsula. It will add facilities to the existing Glider route on the Newtownards Road.”
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