Buckinghamshire Council has defended the decision to introduce new parking restrictions in a Marlow square – and explained the reason behind a ‘confusing’ payment system.

New tariffs at Quoiting Square, a patch of land between Oxford and Marlow Road, came into effect on Thursday, September 18, after being approved by the council in July.

The new measures include permit and payment parking between 7am and 7pm for seven days a week at the site, a maximum 24-hour stay, no return within 11 hours and no waiting at any time.

The Free Press reported earlier this week that local car dealership Platts of Marlow, which has a showroom in the square, was planning to contest ownership of the land, which managing director Tim Platts suggested they were “entitled” to after 20 years of unchallenged use.

Tim also criticised the “confusing” signage of the new restrictions – which indicate a singular payment method of ‘checking the signs in another car park’.

Dominic Barnes, the council’s deputy cabinet member for transport has now explained the reasoning behind the payment system as well as justifying the introduction of new tariffs at the spot.

(Image: NQ)

He said: “The Parking Strategy we adopted in February sets out our vision for parking, including innovation around payment methods and moving to a digital platform.

“Drivers can pay for their parking at Quoiting Square via the National Parking Programme, which is a pilot supported by the Department for Transport.

“This allows the customer to choose which supplier they wish to purchase their parking session with, thus creating more flexibility.

“Nearby parking locations, such as West Street car park, continue to offer both payment by machine and via the National Parking Programme.

“In terms of the signage, there is a transition period for the changeover, and we expect all the new signs to be in place by the weekend.”

Mr Barnes added: “The parking changes in the square are being introduced following a public consultation that ran earlier this year.

“Their purpose is to create a turnover on the availability of parking spaces in Marlow and create consistency in how we operate parking in the town.”