Newry council offers free Christmas parking
Free parking returns for lead up to Christmas in Newry City
EAMONN Connolly of Newry BID welcomed Newry, Mourne and Down’s decision to approve the provision of free parking for the three weekends immediately preceding Christmas 2026 within Council-operated charged off-street car parks.
It was agreed on the proposal of Councillor Declan Murphy, seconded by Councillor Martin Hearty last week.
“We are delighted to see the renewal of free car parking on December Saturdays in the Council's car parks,” said BID.
“This is a welcome development on the back of the success of last year’s successful introduction after our lobbying for the same. It is a critical time of year for Newry traders and anything that makes Newry more welcoming is good news and anything that enhances parking is particularly important.”
This follows a report from Mr Sage, Assistant Director of Sustainability at NMDD, which sought Members' consideration of parking arrangements in Council-operated charged off-street car parks in the period leading up to Christmas 2026. He advised that free weekend parking had been introduced ahead of Christmas 2025 following approval of a Notice of Motion submitted by Councillor Kearns.
He noted that, while the initiative had supported town centre businesses, it had resulted in a loss of parking revenue and reduced parking turnover during peak trading periods. He advised that three options had been identified for 2026 and confirmed that officers recommended the continuation of free parking on the three weekends immediately preceding Christmas 2026.
Councillor D Murphy proposed acceptance of the officers' recommendation (Option 3) for free Saturday parking on the three weekends immediately preceding Christmas 2026. He acknowledged concerns regarding all-day parking reducing availability for shoppers but considered the initiative to have been beneficial and noted that feedback from local businesses had generally been positive.
Councillor Truesdale expressed support for the recommendation, noting that the initiative had appeared successful. She suggested that it be reviewed before Christmas 2027, given the associated loss of revenue and concerns regarding misuse of the free parking provision.
Councillor Andrews supported the recommendation and highlighted the importance of measures to encourage footfall in town centres. He suggested that feedback be sought from businesses, traders and consumers to inform future consideration of the initiative.
Councillor Finn welcomed the initiative and noted its popularity during the previous Christmas traders and consumers to inform future consideration of the initiative.
Councillor Finn welcomed the initiative and noted its popularity during the previous Christmas period. She emphasised the importance of supporting town centre businesses and suggested engagement with BID organisations, trade groups and local businesses to better understand the impact of the scheme and identify potential improvements.
Mr Sage advised that, subject to the Committee's decision, an evaluation process would be undertaken, and engagement would take place with local businesses to obtain feedback. He added that further assessment could also be carried out to examine traffic congestion, traffic flow and parking turnover to support a more comprehensive review of the scheme's effectiveness.