Additional reporting by Gabriel Morris

A mothballed Park & Ride site controversially reopened to much opposition is causing more pollution than it prevents and losing almost £30,000 a month, KentOnline can reveal.

Council leaders have been accused of throwing money “in the bin” by continuing to run the Sturry Road service on the outskirts of Canterbury.

New data shows passengers from a daily average of just 89 cars are being ferried into the city centre on largely empty diesel buses running almost 80 times a day.

It comes as Canterbury City Council admits its entire Park & Ride service - which includes two other sites in Wincheap and New Dover Road - is now generating “approximately 143 tonnes of CO2 a year more than it is saving”.

One opposition councillor, the Green Party’s Andrew Harvey, said of the Sturry Road numbers: “Effectively we’re almost replacing each car with a bus, which is clearly ludicrous.”

The relaunch of the site in April was a flagship policy of the authority’s new Labour/Lib Dem coalition following last year’s local elections.

The service had been mothballed in 2022 by the former Tory council because it was underused and costing too much to subsidise.

But it was restored in April, with a recent report on its performance shining a light on the true cost of the site - both to the public purse and the environment.

While CCC is expected to enjoy a surplus of £5 million this year from parking revenue as a whole, it estimates a £388,388 shortfall in covering its contract with Stagecoach to run the Park & Ride service.

Much of that subsidy is caused by the Sturry Road site, which currently generates about £10,828 a month but costs £39,566 to run - a loss of £28,738.

Figures show an average of 89 vehicles a day used the service in the first four months after its relaunch - each paying £4 to jump on buses running every 10 minutes, or £3.20 with a residents’ discount.

The council’s own report concedes: “It is estimated the current operation with diesel buses is generating approximately 143 tonnes of CO2 a year more than it is saving.”

Before the Covid pandemic - when more than 230 cars a day were using the Sturry Road site - the wider service saved 100 tonnes of CO2 a year.

Speaking at a scrutiny meeting this month, Cllr Harvey said: “We should seriously consider renegotiating the Stagecoach contract. These diesel buses could easily be replaced by seven-seat or nine-seat electric vehicle minibuses that would comfortably do a day’s work on one charge.”

Cllr Alex Ricketts (Lib Dem), the council’s cabinet member for transport, says user numbers are “moving in the right direction”, with almost 600 more vehicles at the Sturry Road site in July than in April.

But opponents say little optimism can be drawn from the data, with usage much lower than pre-pandemic and actually falling slightly between May and June this year.

Cllr Watkins said at the meeting: “This doesn’t tell us that we’re getting better, and we’re starting from such a low base – and that’s why there’s a £400,000 a year subsidy.

“New Dover Road is doing well, Wincheap is doing OK-ish but I cannot get as excited as some who’ve spoken this evening about the performance of Sturry, which I think looks very poor.

“That £5 million we’re on track to make [from parking] doesn’t justify just putting £400,000 in the bin because we have an ideological desire to keep open a Park & Ride that doesn’t perform that well.”

While stating usage of the site has “steadily increased” since the pandemic, a council officer conceded: “Let’s not kid ourselves, they are pretty low figures.”

The authority’s latest report describes efforts to increase Park & Ride usage by an average of 10% per year.

Measures to achieve this include cutting the number of city centre parking spaces by 10%, providing a new site to accommodate motorists travelling in along the A2 from Faversham, and potentially running buses until as late as midnight.

The council says it will also consider zero-emission buses and describes installing a new bus lane along Sturry Road as a “key priority”.

Cllr Ricketts says changing the habits of motorists will not happen overnight.

“We want to encourage people to use Park & Ride rather than city centre car parks – that’s a long journey.

“It’s a process that was stalled under the previous administration, that we’ve tried to ramp up.

“Parking as a whole funds it – it’s not coming directly out of your council tax.”

Do residents want Park & Ride?

At midday on Tuesday there were about 100 cars parked up at the Sturry Road site, which has almost 600 spaces.

Among those using the service was Jim Frost, who travels into the city from Margate.

“It’s convenient, it’s cheaper than parking in Canterbury and it’s just as quick - it makes sense financially,” the 60-year-old told KentOnline.

He added that often it is “only me or one or two others” on board the buses.

Margaret Dennis - on holiday in the area from Hampshire - said using the service: “It was superb, very good value for money, and spared us trying to find parking actually in the city centre.”

Her husband, Peter, added: “And a lot cheaper than we would have had to pay in the city centre, so it was ideal.”

However, in Watling Street car park in the city centre, where fees were this year increased to £3.70 per hour, people were less enthused about the Park & Ride.

When asked if she would consider using the service, Nicky Grover, 57, said: “Not really, because I’m always on time for things.

“I don’t want to wait around so it’s easier to just drive in, find a parking spot and then drive out. I don’t want to be waiting for a bus or anything like that.”

Wayne Spillett, 51, added: “We park here because it’s close to the centre, but it’s not the ideal price.

“I think maybe twice or three times I've used [Park & Ride]. It was pretty good.

“But [using a car park] is just a bit more convenient – for £4 if you’re not coming for very long you may as well be [in the city centre].”