New Southend Pass options and trade permit available from April

This means that motorists will have the choice of signing up for either one, three or 12-month periods, and follows resident and visitor feedback that people would be more likely to purchase the Pass if they had the option to commit for shorter periods.

The Southend Pass gives motorists discounted parking, offering up to three hours parking per day, in each of the City’s four parking zones, for just £8.50 per month. The pass works out at just 28p if used daily, 85p if used ten times across a month or £2.12 if used four times a month.

Businesses and tradespeople working across the City can also benefit from reductions to the cost of a tradesperson permit. The permit will cost just £30 per month from 1 April, and allows tradespeople to park in any zone, including resident permit zones, when they are carrying out works on properties across the City. This reduces the number of visitor permits that residents have to provide tradespeople visiting their homes, and also gives more and cheaper parking options for tradespeople that work predominantly within Southend-on-Sea. The permit does not allow parking in public car parks.

The changes to the fees and charges form part of the approved 2022/23 council budget and will also see parking charges in Zone 1a (seafront from Chalkwell to Thorpe Esplanade) standardised at £2.50 per hour and all other zones having their parking charges frozen.

Car parks in Zone 3 will also have their hours extended, meaning motorists can now park in these car parks for up to 10 hours if they need to, as opposed to three hours. This gives residents and visitors increased parking options, with the aim of boosting trade and footfall in other areas of the City.

From 1 April, the Gasworks car park will also be known as Eastern Esplanade car park.

To view the updated highways fees and charges, please visit our democracy website.