THE government is looking to build a new car park in the north of St Helier to provide more spaces, cater for electric vehicles and replace existing multi-storeys, such as Minden Place, which are now more than half a century old.
Speaking at a Scrutiny Panel on Wednesday, Infrastructure Minister Andy Jehan remained tight-lipped on where exactly the new car park might be built, although he said it would be near the ring road, where “hundreds of flats” are being or have been recently built.
He said: “We need to provide additional parking in St Helier, for residents and visitors to the parish. It is now about identifying a site and going through Planning to achieve that.
“We have done a lot of work to identify the changes in car park requirements, including working on the two challenges that electric vehicles bring: weight and fire.”
Tristen Dodd, who is the civil servant in charge of Transport at Infrastructure and Environment, added: “When it comes to the plan, it is always about site acquisition, so publishing it leaves you a hostage to fortune. We are looking at developers and developments that we can work with to redistribute parking.
“We think that the parking needs to be around the ring road, to reduce the amount of through-traffic through town, but also for convenience.”
He added: “In terms of long-term planning that we are undertaking under the minister’s direction, at some point we are going to have to retire car parks. We can keep them going but they become increasingly less fit for purpose.
“Many of the car parks are coming up to their 60th birthday and they won’t go on for forever so what we’re looking at is where the parking needs are for the future – and the north of town is one area that doesn’t have a lot of public parking.
“It is making sure it is on the ring road but at the same time it is about trying to find that additional capacity so that you can retire, repurpose or reconstruct other car parking sites that we already have.”
Mr Jehan and his officers were appearing before the Environment, Housing and Infrastructure Panel at its quarterly public hearing with the Infrastructure Minister.
The minister also was questioned about roadworks, buses, sea defences and Fort Regent.
