Temporary car park opens near Salisbury railway station

The Fisherton car park, operated by South Western Railway, is located between the railway bridge and Royal Mail delivery office.

It will be open for a maximum of three years while work is carried out to add the same number of spaces to the railway station’s main car park.

Accessible spaces will remain in the main car park, not the Fisherton one.

The car park will be in place for up to three years (Image: Newsquest) SWR says prices are set slightly lower in the Fisherton car park to encourage people to use it and reduce congestion around the railway station.

South Western Railway applied for permission to convert the former East Goods Yard in December 2023.

A Wiltshire Council planning committee gave the scheme the green light in May 2024, despite members of the public raising concerns about the car park’s potential impact on Fisherton Street traffic flows and residents of nearby Spire View.

There are 89 spaces for passenger use (Image: Newsquest) Wiltshire Council and SWR are currently working on the final phase of a project to improve the railway station forecourt.

The initial design and access statement said: “This project is part of South Western Railway’s on-going commitment to improve facilities for passengers, visitors and the wider community of Salisbury.

“The key objective of this project is to provide a car parking facility close to the station to support a separate project involving the redevelopment of the forecourt to the front of Salisbury Railway Station.

“The development is intended to comprise of a temporary car park facility in the Salisbury East Goods Yard and is to be a short-term solution to support the redevelopment of the forecourt area to the front of the railway station.

“The proposal will create 89 parking spaces for passenger use, with eight spaces marked out for Royal Mail use.

“A RingGo facility is to be provided for customers to pay for parking. Customers will also be able to purchase parking season tickets on ticket vending machines or online.”

The car park’s maximum lifespan was ratified in its planning permission, which said: “The use of the land for the car park and all associated infrastructure and paraphernalia shall be removed from the land in its entirety within three years of the car park first coming into use.

“Within six months of the car parking first coming into use, a restoration scheme to include a scheme of works for the re-landscaping of the land following cessation of the use shall be submitted to the local planning authority [Wiltshire Council].”