Published 5th January 2021

A new parking permit, enabling local residents to park in any Southend Council-owned car park or on-street parking bay for up to three hours at a time, for only 28p a day (£8.50 per month), will be available from April 2021. Residents are being encouraged to sign up now for e-updates and more information on the scheme prior to launch.

Introduced by the Council’s Labour-led joint administration, the Southend Pass is an annual permit that will start from 1 April 2021 and is designed to help save money for those residents who make frequent trips in and around the town.

It will cover council car parks and parking bays throughout the borough of Southend. Costing just £8.50 per month, drivers will be able to enjoy daily bursts of three hours’ parking in any of the council car parks or in parking bays on the street. It cannot be used in residential parking permit areas.

There will be four zones across the borough, and the three-hour limit can be used in every zone, meaning someone could park for up to 12 hours in a day if they make use of the 3 hours parking available in each zone. To stay longer, people will be able to top up at the end of the three hours.

Southend-on-Sea residents who are interested are asked to sign up to receive updates via email at www.southend.gov.uk/SouthendPassSignUp They will then receive notifications without any commitment to buy, closer to the time the pass launches. More information is available on the Southend Council website: www.southend.gov.uk/southendpass

Cllr Ron Woodley, deputy leader and cabinet member for transport, capital and inward investment said: “At just 28p per day, this will offer exceptional value to our residents, and we hope many people will take advantage of that value, and also the convenience and simplicity the Southend Pass will provide when it launches later this year. Although at the current time some of our car parks and bays are suspended and our message to everyone is please stay at home, stay safe and stay local when you are out, looking forwards we hope we will be in a more positive position once the pass launches later this year, and once again we will encouraging people to explore their borough. In the meantime we are asking local people who are interested to sign up for notifications to find out more about the pass and how to buy it prior to launch.”