Cambridgeshire County Council
On 3rd October 2006 Cambridgeshire County Council provided details of park & ride sites in the county, two of which have spaces for motorhomes. The document can be downloaded in Adobe Acrobat (pdf) format from Here. See extra information provided on 22 September 2009 below.
Cambridgeshire County Council have details of park & ride sites in the county on their web site Here.
Update 20 June 2007:
In response to a query on weight limits, following up from that sent to Cambridge City Council (see below), Cambridgeshire County Council stated "We do not have any weight restriction in the Park & Rides. The information I gave last year is still correct with the extra sized bays at Babraham and Trumpington. The massive motorhomes some people use may have trouble negotiating the internal road ways depending on their driving skill. The trouble is these motorhomes are getting bigger and are the same size as large lorries or coaches and no Park & Rides were designed with these oversized vehicles in mind."
On 17th July 2009 a request was sent to the council asking for details of on-street daytime parking which:
1) is able to be used for parking of motorhomes, including use of multiple bays if allowed
2) is not able to be used for parking of motorhomes
together with any restrictions (e.g. height, weight, length limits) which apply.
The council was also asked to supply details of those areas (if any) which may be used for overnight parking and whether or not sleeping/eating in the vehicle is allowed.
On 22nd September 2009, the Council provided the following information regarding on street parking and parking at P&R sites:
1) At present two of the 5 Park & Ride sites allow motor home parking. These are the sites at Trumpington and Babraham Road. There are a dedicated number of motor home bays at each of these sites. Trumpington Park & Ride site 9 dedicated long motor home bays. Babraham Road Park & Ride site 8 dedicated long motor home bays. Within the next few weeks additional height restrictions will be added to both Babraham Road and Trumpington sites. The motor home bays at Babraham will therefore no longer be available. The bays at Trumpington will be available but drivers of these vehicles will have to park and request access to the bays.
2) The remaining three sites have height restrictions varying from between 2 m to 2.1m in height. Madingley Road Park & Ride site height restriction 2 metres, Milton Park & Ride site height restriction 2.1metres, Newmarket Road Park & Ride site height restriction 2.1metres.
Overnight parking at any of the Park and Rides sites is not allowed.
For other parking, the Traffic Regulation Orders (TRO) for on street parking bays do not exclude any vehicle but any vehicle that does park must do so within the confines of the marked bay. The bays do not operate overnight and most cease to operate at 8pm at the latest. There is no restriction on sleeping or eating in the vehicle in the TRO but cannot confirm or otherwise if an offence is committed under national legislation.
A reply was sent to the council expressing regret that it had found it necessary to introduce height restrictions at Trumpington and Babraham Road, together with the hope that it will (in time) be able to find a way to provide more motorhome spaces at P&R sites.
On 28th September 2009, the Council provided the following explanation:
Unfortunately we have had a large number of traveller incursions at both sites over the last few years. We are now recognised as an open site for travellers and we have 3 or 4 visits by a large number of caravans each year. Not only does this create problems for our customers but costs the Park & Ride service many thousands per year to have the travellers removed and to clear up after they have been evicted. Trumpington will still allow motor homes on request when the barriers have been erected. On arrival at the site if you ring 01223 846821 a co-ordinator will open a gate to let the motor home in.
Users of this web site have provided the following information:
1) I can confirm your recent addition re the Cambridge P&R. I fell foul of it this week as we have normally used Babraham Road. It is off putting as there is no sign to say they will let you in at Trumpington until you are already into the site. It is also a bit of a performance as they use a side gate (the height barriers are permanent) and it is necessary to be both let in and out. I have contacted both the council and tourist office pointing out that if Cambridge considers itself to be a major tourist destination they really ought to work out a sensible solution and make it obvious to tourists arriving. I can sympathise with their problem as it seems that they have had four traveller occupations to deal with in the last year. If enough of us use the one site they will have to think of a better solution. (Thanks to RF for providing this information on 18 November 2009).
2) (Thanks to AJP for providing this information on 15 July 2010). Update from CCC about their P&R for M/H
We did use to have motor home parking at our Babraham site and are awaiting relining to turn the spaces into proper car parking spaces, however due to unauthorised traveller excursions staying for periods longer then the day and causing great expense we had to take the decision to place height barriers into all our sites to prevent this reoccurring. When making this decision we understood that this was going to cause problems for several of our users who use campervans, and found a solution that we are able to offer at our Trumpington Park & Ride site (Junction 11 on the M11, CB2 9FT)
At this site we have a back gate which our co-ordinators will open to allow you to park and visit our city for the day, the restrictions being you must return Monday - Saturday by 8pm, and Sundays by 6pm to be let out.
When entering from the M11, you stay on the main road ignoring the slip road into the site, At the first set of working traffic lights, turn left and you enter the site from our 2nd entrance, as directed by our height barrier warning sign. Here you can take the roundabout within the site's 3rd exit which leads to a double gate at the bottom corner of our site. There is a sign which points you in the right direction with our site number on it (01223 846821), so you can call or visit our main building and our co-ordinators will come out to open the gate to allow you in. They do try and keep an eye out for motorhomes and campervans when they can. On your return as you get back if you let our front desk know that you have a motorhome/campervan they will meet you at the gate to let you out.
Cambridge City
On 3rd October 2006 Cambridge City Council provided details of parking provided on street which includes on street pay and display and the parking provided using City Centre Car Parks plus two leaflets, one containing a car park map and one which includes information regarding the Park & Ride Scheme in operation. These document can be downloaded in Adobe Acrobat (pdf) format by clicking on the following links: 1. On street & car park details, 2. Car park map, 3. Get Into Cambridge leaflet.
On 4th October 2006 the council provided the following extra information:
Cambridge City Council run 5 multi storey car parks, and 3 open air Pay and Display car parks.
1. There are height restrictions in our multi storey car parks: Lion Yard = 6'6"; Grafton East = 6'6"; Grafton West = 6'6"; Park Street = 6'6"; Queen Anne Terrace = 7'. There are no height restrictions in any of the 3 off street car parks (Adam & Eve, Castle Street, Gwydir Street).
2. All vehicles are required to park within the bay markings in all of our car parks, and if they are not then the vehicle is liable to receive a Penalty Charge Notice. Even if you purchase 2 tickets to represent parking in 2 bays.
3. There are no waste disposal facilities in any of the car parks. The Grafton car parks are part of the Grafton Shopping Centre so there are toilets located near by. Park Street car park has toilets on site that cost 20p. The other car parks do not offer toilet facilities on site.
4. There are no spaces specifically aimed at motorhomes or caravans.
5. All of our car parks are open 24/7 so it is acceptable to park a vehicle as long as you need. However, the multi storey car parks are aimed at short stay only so to park for any length of time will be very expensive. The Pay and Display car parks do have time restrictions on them so they will have to be followed. The council provided a current list of fees and charging times; these can be accessed on the council's web site (see link below).
6. I would say that all of our multi storey car parks would be too narrow as well as too low. Out of the Pay and Display car parks I would say that Castle Street car park is the most spacious. I think the other 2 car parks (Adam & Eve, Gwydir Street) would be too tight to manoeuvre a motorhome or caravan.
Cambridge City Council have further details on their web site Here.
Update 20 June 2007:
The "On street & car park details" included in the initial reply from Cambridge City Council above referred to a weight limit for on-street parking of 1.5 tonnes. Some time after the initial reply had been received it came to my notice that many other vehicles (e.g. large 4x4s) weigh in excess of 1.5 tonnes (some of the largest 4x4s even being heavier than many motorhomes). A further request for information was sent to the council asking for clarification. In response the council stated "Whilst there is a maximum weight limit put into place by the Highways Department of Cambridgeshire County Council our Parking Attendants do not currently enforce this and therefore no training has been provided to determine on street whether a vehicle exceeds the weight limit. A Penalty Charge Notice can be issued to motorhomes/ large vehicles if the vehicle in question does not fit wholly within the bay markings or is not displaying a valid pay and display ticket. May I suggest that you contact Cambridgeshire Highways for further information regarding the weight limit in place."
On 27th June 2007, Cambridgeshire County Council stated "This is indeed not a practicable option for parking attendants to assess the weight of a vehicle. In the case of pay and display the criteria which the City Council has stated are correct in that the vehicle must park so as to be entirely within the bay and be displaying a valid ticket."
On 22nd April 2009, in response to a follow-up query, the council confirmed that the information above had not been subjected to significant change and added:
The only change of note is that the Lion Yard Car Park has changed its name to Grand Arcade. I have attached a PDF document reflecting this change for you to add to the webpage. The document can be downloaded from Here.
We have developed our website in recent months. These improvements include a map which points customers to where pay and display machines are located - Click Here.
Please note that all vehicles must be able to fit wholly into the bay markings.
Users of this web site have provided the following information:
Cambridge
Here is our solution to parking in Cambridge with a motorhome which we used last week. Park at Milton Country Park, just off A14 north of city, £2 all day and cycle into city centre using NCN 11, it takes about 15/20 minutes and goes alongside the River Cam for a lot of it, so is very pleasant. Cambridge has lots of cycle paths so is easy to get around on a bike. Hope this helps fellow travellers. (Thanks to HB for providing this information on 20 August 2011).
East Cambridgeshire
On 21st August 2006, East Cambridgeshire Council provided a spreadsheet of car parks information, plus the following information:
There is a height restriction of 8' 6'' on Brays Lane Car Park.
In all of our car parks a vehicle is required to park within one bay.
Ship Lane, Newnham Street, & Barton Road Car Parks have toilet facilities, but no waste disposal.
Cresswells Lane Car Park is designed to take larger vehicles, but there is no entry to this Car Park after 7pm, but if already parked on there a vehicle can get off, by driving up to the automatic barrier.
The spreadsheet can be downloaded in Adobe Acrobat (pdf) format from Here.
On 27th December 2007, East Cambrigeshire Council provided the following update:
1) Forehill Car Park in Ely, is the only car park that motor homes can park on, for a limited time of 4 hours, between 8:30am - 6pm, Mon - Sat.
2) All other car parks now have a length restriction of 5.3metres and a height restriction of 2.5metres.
3) Sleeping, camping or cooking is not allowed on any car park.
On 13th March 2009, a request was sent to the Council asking if it was possible to park a motorhome at the P&R sites it provides. On 1st April 2009, the council replied:
East Cambridgeshire District Council currently operates 2 Park & Ride car park sites at Angel Drove, Ely, and Community College, Downham Road, Ely, however both of these are operated as Park and Ride sites on Saturdays only and neither of these sites can be used for the parking of motor homes.
East Cambridgeshire District Council Off Street Parking Places Order 2008 states the following: "The Off Street Parking Places Order 2008 - Part11, 7. (2) No person shall use any part of a parking place or any vehicle left in a parking place - (a) for sleeping or camping or cooking purposes; Schedule 2; Forehill Car Park - Class of Vehicle - v) Motor Homes."
To clarify this - a motor home may be parked on Forehill Car Park, Ely, in a marked parking bay (motor homes usually need to take 2 bays, as there are no bays especially marked out for them), for no longer than 4 hours, as long as it is not used for sleeping, camping or cooking/eating purposes. The 4-hour restriction applies Monday-Saturday from 8.30 a.m. - 6.00 p.m. A motor home may be parked overnight (but not used for sleeping, camping or cooking/eating purposes) but must be moved off the car park by 8.30 a.m. with no return for 2 hours, as there are early morning parking restrictions on this car park. On Sundays and Bank Holidays early morning restrictions do not apply, however, the prohibition on the use of the vehicle for sleeping, camping or cooking/eating purposes applies at all times.
Forehill Car Park, Ely, is the only car park where motor homes may park legally, however it is not a Park and Ride car park.
East Cambridgeshire Council have further parking details on their web site.
Users of this web site have provided the following information:
Ely
1) Cresswells Lane Car Park. Found this car-park during a tour of the Fens in the summer, a nice mixture of car, motorhome and LGV parking - and all free (no overnight parking). Car park sign says "Welcome to the City of Ely Cresswells Lane Vehicle Park; Long Stay 23 Hours; Free Parking". (Thanks to AL for providing this information on 19 December 2007). N.B. See updated details from East Cambridgeshire Council above.
2) We recently visited Ely and tried to follow your parking advice, Unfortunately the Cresswells Lane Car Park is now 'no more' i.e. closed and entrance barred. We could also not get into the Forehill car park as it was very busy and we could not see the motorhome bays. However, we did get into the car and bus park which is off the Cambridge Rd and only 5 mins walk for them centre. It also has a conveniently attached medical centre car park, which acts as an overflow at weekends and had room for motorhomes. (Thanks to MC for providing this information on 19 December 2010).
3) The Saturday Park and Ride service off the ring road at Ely on the B1411 Downham road will take motorhomes with no charge. (Thanks to PS for providing this information on 30 November 2011).
Fenland
On 9th January 2008 Fenland District Council provided the following information:
We have reviewed and updated the information that was previously issued to you in August 2006 regarding Fenland District Council car parks as follows:-
1) Fenland District Council car parks do not have any height restrictions in place at this present time.
2) Fenland District Council does not currently charge for parking. However, vehicles parked, of any type, are expected to adhere to the bays and conditions as indicated.
3) Public toilets are available at certain car parks under Fenland District Council control, but no other waste disposal facilities exist.
4) No specific provision is made at any Fenland District Council car parks for Motorhomes or Caravans.
5) The only car park under Fenland District Council control that has provision for overnight parking is City Road Lorry Park, March. All others have either unrestricted parking OR have time limitation or vehicle type restrictions in place.
6) There are no specific narrow entrances to Fenland District Council car parks. However, manoeuvring within the car parks at peak times can be difficult for anything larger than a standard car.
Further information can be obtained for all car parks in the Fenland area on the Fenland web site and at the carparks4u.com web site.
Huntingdonshire
On 29th August 2006 Huntingdonshire District Council provided the following information:
We do not have height restrictions
Vehicles are required to park within marked bays. This is not explicit where more than one bay is taken as to whether 2 tickets are required.
No waste disposal points exist. Toilet are present at: Riverside Huntingdon; Riverside St Neots; Tebbutts Rd, St Neots; Globe Place St Ives; Cattle Market St Ives.
No spaces provided for motorhomes or caravans The Order says "Classes of Vehicles (i) Motor cars within the provisions of Section 136(2)(a) of the Act; (ii) Motor cycles as defined in Section 136(4) of the Act; (iii) Motor vehicles constructed or adapted for use for the conveyance of goods or burden the unladen weight of which does not exceed 3.5 tonnes; (iv) Invalid carriages as defined in Section 136(5) of the Act; (v) Self propelled caravans as defined in Regulation 3(2) of the Motor Vehicles (Construction and Use) Regulations 1986."
No overnight camping or sleeping allowed in any of our car parks
All car parks have access for the vehicles allowed, but limited room for large vehicles to manoeuvre internally.
The council provided copies of the parking orders which have been loaded to this site in Adobe Acrobat (pdf) format at Order 1 and Order 2
On 10 December 2007, in response to a follow-up query, the council replied as follows:
The Charged Car Parking Order which covers all the charged car parks in the town centres states:
Where parking bays are provided then the driver of a vehicle shall park the vehicle properly in the marked parking bay and not in such a position as to cause an obstruction.
Classes of Vehicles (allowed): (i) Motor cars within the provisions of Section 136(2)(a) of the Act; (ii) Motor cycles as defined in Section 136(4) of the Act; (iii) Motor vehicles constructed or adapted for use for the conveyance of goods or burden the unladen weight of which does not exceed 3.5 tonnes; (iv) Invalid carriages as defined in Section 136(5) of the Act; (v) Self propelled caravans as defined in Regulation 3(2) of the Motor Vehicles (Construction and Use) Regulations 1986.
So, the Order allows Motor Homes but states that they must fit within the marked bays. The bays are generally 5 metres by 2.5 metres. There are no large bays marked in the town centre car parks
For free cars parks, the class of vehicles is slightly different: Classes of vehicles: (a) Motor cars within the provisions of Section 136(2) (a) of the Act of 1984; (b) Motor cycles as defined in Section 136 (4) of the Act of 1984; (c) Motor vehicles constructed or adapted for use for the conveyance of goods or burden the unladen weight of which does not exceed one tonne; (d) Invalid carriages as defined in Section 136 (5) of the Act of 1984; (e) Caravans as defined in Section 26 (13) of the Motor Vehicles (Construction and Use) Regulations 1978 which do not exceed four metres in length
The Order also states: No person shall use any part of a parking place or any vehicle left in a parking place or anything towed by a vehicle: (a) for residing or sleeping or camping or cooking
Huntingdonshire District Council have further parking details on their web site.
Peterborough
On 29th September 2006 Peterborough City Council provided the following information:
1. Height restrictions. Of the City Council Car Parks only Riverside, Brook Street and Trinity Street (further restricted to evenings and weekends only) have no height restrictions.
2. Requirements for parking within bay confines (including any requirement for purchasing two parking tickets where the length of a vehicle means that it overhangs a second bay at its rear). The signage within City Council car parks states that “You must purchase a ticket for any trailer or caravan, where you occupy more than one bay”.
3. Any provision of toilet and waste disposal facilities. Public toilets are present at the Car Haven & Multi Storey Car Park, but neither can accommodate large vehicles.
4. Any provision of spaces specifically aimed at motorhomes and/or caravans. None within PCC car parks.
5. Any provision for (or ban on) overnight parking. Camping is prohibited in all PCC carparks but overnight parking is permitted, providing the requisite tickets are purchased and displayed. There is a city wide ban in Peterborough that prohibits any vehicle (exceeding 5T maximum gross weight) parking on-street overnight.
6. Restricted access caused by narrow roads/entrances. Of the car parks that can accommodate motorhomes, Riverside and Brook Street both have wide entrances but Trinity Street has a narrow entrance.
On 9th April 2008, in response to a follow-up request, the council confirmed that the above information was still current.
Peterborough City Council have further information for car parks on their web site Here.
Users of this web site have provided the following information:
Peterborough
1) Flag Fen Bronze Age Centre, The Droveway, Northey Road, Peterborough, PE6 7QJ. We visited the archaeological tourist site 'Flag Fen' at the weekend and wish to report positively about the parking arrangements. No height or width barriers at entrance to the car park. Good access road. Room to manoeuvre in the car park. Opportunity to park large motorhome (ours is 23') although we visited out of season when the car park was not full. There are un-marked areas to park. It would not be possible to camp overnight. (Thanks very much to M&MF for this information, received 7 March 2007).
2) July 2008. Tesco Extra store at Hampton Hargate is easily accessible both for shopping and fuel.
South Cambridgeshire
On 29th September 2006 South Cambridgeshire District Council provided the following information:
Firstly, this Council currently owns four public car parks as follows: High Street, Histon; Coles Lane, Linton; High Street, Melbourn; High Street, Sawston and the following car park is leased by the Council: Woollards Lane, Great Shelford.
All of these car parks are free of charge and are primarily for the use of local village residents and people using the nearby shops.
Histon has both a height restriction and a narrow accessway.
Linton and Great Shelford both have narrow accessways.
Melbourn and Sawston are the largest car parks but there are no spaces specifically provided for motorhomes/caravans.
Sawston in particular is a well-used car park.
None of the car parks provide toilet and waste disposal facilities.
The Council would not support overnight parking in any of its car parks.
Motorhomes could be parked at Melbourn and Sawston but only on a short-term basis.
On 15th May 2008, in response to a follow-up request, the Council confirmed that the information above was still valid.
Return to Motorhome Friendly and Unfriendly Parking home page.
Last updated: 30 November 2011