Alan Payling reports on changes to coach parking in Brixham and reveals that the popular destination is very much open for business despite rumours to the contrary
It was Mark Twain who said that: ‘Rumours of my death have been greatly exaggerated.’ Similarly, stories that have been circulating that Brixham currently has no facilities for coaches to park up in the town are also not true.
By subscribing you will benefit from:
- Operator & Supplier Profiles
- Face-to-Face Interviews
- Lastest News
- Test Drives and Reviews
- Legal Updates
- Route Focus
- Industry Insider Opinions
- Passenger Perspective
- Vehicle Launches
- and much more!
Brixham is a very popular destination for the coach trade. Being right on the doorstep for the hundreds of operators that stay in Torquay and Paignton every year, it’s an easy option that keeps everyone happy: passengers visit a historic, working fishing port and operators only use a couple of gallons of fuel, if that.
Operators also run day trips to Brixham from further afield. But the demands in the small fishing port on road and parking space are increasing. In addition to the residents, the coach trade and other holidaymakers, the important multi-million-pound fishing industry based in the town now needs more space. That is why the coach park at Oven Cove has had to close. A new jetty at Oxen Cove is currently under construction so while the coach bays there have had to close temporarily, new coach bays have been provided in the car park next door to Oxen Cove.
Open for business
Freshwater Car Park now has bays marked out for five coaches. Drivers should follow the same route through Brixham to Freshwater – through the harbour, up Overgang, and when they drop down the hill, they will see the five new coach bays in front of them. This is a reduction in coach parking space so drivers may want to try and stagger their visits. Easier said than always done. While the traditional time has been to visit in the morning, some drivers may want to go later. When I visited Brixham, I spoke to a driver who had arrived from Bodmin to find all the new coach bays were full. He just waited with his coach until a space was available. Not ideal if drivers have travelled any distance and need to set their tachograph for a legal break for example. However, the driver I spoke to said he did not have to wait long till a coach departed and he could park on a bay. An official in Torquay
Council’s parking department told me that if a driver can’t immediately get on to a bay and they have to wait five or ten minutes, then a bit of flexibility will be applied. However, if a coach is incorrectly parked and unattended, the parking regulations will be enforced. A bit of common sense and drivers working together should avoid problems.
Drivers can still drop their passengers in Freshwater Car Park allowing them to walk along more or less the same level route to the harbour, although it will be a couple of hundred yards further to walk. Drivers do have two other options. The most convenient drop off point is right on the harbour side or they can drop off/pick up in the bus/taxi station at the top of the town in Brewery Lane.
In other words, Brixham is open for coach business and is ready to make coach drivers, their passengers and their vehicles welcome, bearing in mind the pressure on space. Patience might be a good virtue to rely on in Brixham.
The work on the new jetty is expected to take some 26 weeks when the coach bays will be re-instated in Oxen Cove.
I say all this because of the stories that have been circulating about Brixham’s coach park closing down. A sign recently appeared at Oxen Cove stating that the coach park was due to close to allow the new jetty to be constructed.
The sign went on to say that ‘…all vehicles…’ would need to park in Freshwater Car Park. The problem was that when the sign went up, there were no coach bays in that car park and it was not made clear on the sign that alternative parking arrangements for coaches would be made available, which is what actually happened without any disruption for visiting coach parties. News of the closure of the Oxen Cove coach parking bays was then posted on social media without any mention that new facilities for coaches would be available close by. This story then spread amongst coach drivers suggesting that there would be nowhere to park in Brixham.
Don’t believe everything that you read
I spoke to five drivers who were visiting Torbay who told me that they had heard Brixham coach park was closed. One driver from south Yorkshire told me that his firm wasn’t going to Brixham because of what they had ‘heard on Facebook.’ This then led to one driver being very quick to form opinions about what the people in Brixham think about the coach trade. He told me that he had heard that Brixham coach park was closed and then went on to on to say about the town that: ‘They don’t want us there.’ In the case of Brixham, absolutely nothing could be further from the truth. But don’t take my word for it. Listen to Gary Callaway of the Brixham Fish Bar on Brixham’s harbour side who said of the coach trade: “It means everything to us. Without the coach trade, it would be curtains for the town. Coaches are very welcome. They are vital.” Matt Crabtree, Chair of Brixham Chamber of Trade said: “Visiting coaches are vital to the local economy of Brixham and are always welcome. Brixham has a limited amount of tourist accommodation and so the income from day trippers, brought to the town by coaches, is essential.”
Can I therefore make two suggestions? One, if you do use social media, it might be an idea to double check what you read. In the case of Brixham’s coach parking facilities, a quick call to Torbay Council’s parking department, which is who I spoke to, would have revealed the truth about what was actually happening in Brixham. Their number will be online. And two, keep on reading CBW. We speak to the people that matter to provide readers with accurate information.
Finally, if you want to hear what the local traders like Gary think about the coach trade straight from the fish’s mouth, pop into his fish and chip shop the next time you visit Brixham. In addition to some accurate info, you’ll get some great fish and chips. And as a former coaching hotelier, Gary said that as far as he is concerned, he always treats drivers better than his other customers. And that is no exaggeration!
