SATURDAY morning parking in Swan Hill will now be free throughout the whole year, after a trial found it provided some benefits for local trade.
Parking in the Swan Hill CBD has been free for the past three months under a Swan Hill Inc-led trial to gauge whether or not it would improve business for local traders.
At Tuesday’s Swan Hill Rural City Council’s meeting, councillors voted to make the free Saturday parking permanent after hearing local businesses’ feedback on the trial.
The councillors were presented with a Swan Hill Inc survey, which found 37 per cent of respondents noticed a positive impact on their business measured by increased sales, foot traffic and the length of time customers spent in their business.
The survey also reported 53 per cent of local traders found the free parking was well received by shoppers.
“After our time was up, we approached our members and asked what they thought about it and they came back with some answers, and the general opinion was that from the customer point of view it was an excellent idea,” Swan Hill Inc chairman Murray Ray said.
For more on this story, grab a copy of Friday’s Guardian (February 19).
