The Christchurch City Council is encouraging residents to use alternative transport when travelling to the central city.

The local authority is wanting “public feedback” on its “Draft Christchurch Central Parking Policy” but has made it clear that it won’t be supporting the use of private cars in the central city.

The report said “Christchurch Central Parking Policy advocates for the uptake of sustainable modes of travel, like walking, taking the bus, cycling or scooting and looks at how we balance the limited space between these modes.’’

“Mode shift from single-occupant vehicles to sustainable modes is an important part of our strategy to reduce our emissions and address other problems associated with high levels of car usage. These include reduced amenity, safety risks and poor health outcomes, and the significant rise in congestion forecast for the future.”

It said Christchurch’s city centre has about 33,000 parking spaces. About 20 per cent of the parking spaces are on-street, with the majority offering unmetered and unrestricted parking.

The balance of the parking is provided off-street. Some of the off-street parking is for the exclusive use of particular shops or businesses, but there are still about 7200 publicly available off-street parking spaces that are managed either by the private sector or the Council.

The Christchurch Central City Parking Policy is currently out for consultation until 5pm Monday 22 February 2021.