Plans have been drawn up to open two of York’s Park and Rides for overnight parking as part of £4.25m worth of improvements to the sites.
City of York Council plans would see dedicated spaces for overnight stays created at the Park and Rides at Askham Bar and Rawcliffe Bar.
A council report stated it would mean visitors coming to York for the weekend would be able to park outside the city centre and travel in by bus.
The proposals are set to go before the council’s executive on Tuesday (7 October).
They come as part of the council’s Bus Service Improvement Plan (BSIP) which is backed by £4m in Department for Transport funding.
A further £250,000 has been granted by the York and North Yorkshire Combined Authority.
The funds are set to support the council’s aim to turn five of the city’s Park and Rides into multi-use transport hubs.
The plans cover Askham Bar, Grimston Bar, Monks Cross, Rawcliffe Bar and Poppleton Bar.
Proposals include expanding cycle parking so people can ride the sites and then get the bus and car club bays.
There are also plans for National Express and Flixbus coaches to stop at Askham Bar and install parcel lockers and bike repair stands across all the sites.
Upgrades are also planned at the Grimston Bar and Rawcliffe Bar sites, both of which opened in the 1990s and require substantial modernisation according to a council report.
The report stated staff and toilet facilities at Grimston Bar are in a poor state of repair while Rawcliffe Bar suffers from antisocial behaviour and quality passenger facilities are lacking.
Site security has also been an issue at Monks Cross, with its building targeted by antisocial behaviour resulting in its toilets being closed.
The proposals also come ahead of the expiry of the contract, currently held by First, to run Park and Ride bus services and manage the sites in January.
The report stated the expiry would ideally unlock potential longer-term investment in the sites but it is subject to how the future model of public transport will look.
Public transport powers are being transferred to the combined authority which is currently working on plans for how local bus services will be run in the future.
The council’s report stated: “A range of infrastructure changes are required to replace and refresh existing ageing site facilities, improve security and offer a more dynamic Park and Ride product.
“Overnight parking at two Park and Ride sites will enable more people to use the service and can reduce the number of vehicles arriving into York city centre looking for spaces.
“This can reduce congestion, particularly on Friday afternoons where bus operating conditions are challenging.”
It follows the council’s decision to extend the opening hours of Park and Rides in July.
The first buses now leave the sites at 5.30am from Monday to Saturday and from 7.30am on Sunday.
The last services leave the city centre for the Park and Rides at 10.30pm.
