After a great deal of discussion with local residents, I have written to the Royal Parks this week outlining a number of concerns I have regarding their proposal to introduce car parking charges inside Richmond Park.

I am concerned about the displacement of cars from the car parks inside the park to the roads near the gates.

I am also worried about access to the park for low-income visitors, who may not have their own outdoor space, and for elderly and less able visitors who are not Blue Badge holders but are also not mobile enough to use active forms of travel to reach the park.

Lastly, while the charges may not be a lot of money for occasional visitors, many people like to use the park several times a week, which will become prohibitively expensive.

I have also asked Royal Parks to work with local transport providers to improve public transport connectivity to the park, and I am suggesting they reduce the chargeable hours.

You can see my full letter here.

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