CPT West Midlands’ coach parking survey revealed Shropshire, outside of Shrewsbury, had 2% of visitors (4,242 out of 212,100) arriving by coach. Shrewsbury itself had 4,190 coach passengers, 4% of the 104,760 visitors to the town. Stratford upon Avon was very successful, attracting 13,582 coaches during 2010.
In a separate development, Shrewsbury has applied for Coach Friendly Towns Status and the regional CPT WM has been working closely with them. Last week CPT WM regional manager Phil Bateman visited Shropshire County Council and met representatives of the public transport team, tourism and parking, along with a representative from Shrewsbury Tourism Association.
Coventry City Council has also submitted a late bid for Coach Friendly status for the City.
“This is a much focused bid and though arriving late has some impetus with Coventry hosting an event for the London 2012 games and the advent of the 50th Anniversary on the new Cathedral,” said Mr. Bateman. “I will keep operators informed of developments. I am in close contact with Coventry City officers.”