Bats scupper plans for new National Trust car park at Cheddar Gorge

Motorists visiting Cheddar Gorge will continue to compete for parking spaces, after plans for a new National Trust car park were refused, because of its impact on local bats.

The National Trust put forward plans in September 2023 to build a new 20-space pay and display car park at the Black Rock Nature Reserve, located off the B3135 Cliff Road, which runs through the gorge.

The trust argued that this would reduce the number of cars competing for the limited lay-bys or parking on the roadside, as well as providing a water refill station for thirsty hikers.

But after more than two years of consultation and negotiation, Somerset Council has thrown out the plans, stating the trust had provided “insufficient information” about how the impact on local bats would be mitigated.

The proposed site lies at the eastern end of Cliff Road near the beginning of a public right of way leading up along the top of the gorge – a route which was recently upgraded by the National Trust in partnership with Heidelberg Materials (which operates the nearby quarry at Warrens Hill).

The car park would have had enough space for 20 cars (including two disabled spaces), with a single parking meter, an information board for visitors, a water refill station and a number of cycle stands.

The car park would have had a one-way system, with new boulders being installed on the verge near the entrance to the cliff-top footpath to reduce the risk of further erosion.

A spokesperson for the National Trust said: “The need for the proposal has

come about due to Black Rock being an incredibly popular starting point for walkers and cyclists travelling to the area by car.

“At present, cars park on the verges and this has started to cause significant

erosion to the verges, the edge of the carriageway and the base of some of the cliffs.

“By proposing the formation of a modest 20-space off-road car parking area, it is felt that this will alleviate the erosion problem currently being experienced.

“It will also provide a much safer area for people parking at the site to enter and exist their vehicles, rather than doing so on the edge of the main road.”

Cheddar Gorge contains a number of car parks or large lay-bys which motorists are currently not charged to use.

Mrs A Goodey, who lives just outside Wedmore, argued that charging people to park would encourage more fly-parking on the verge, damaging the character of the gorge.

She reasoned: “The walks from Black Rock are expansive and beautiful. It is a wonderful countryside resource for the community and the wider public.

“At the moment, people park on the lay-bys at the side of the road to access the walks, which may seem an inconvenience.

“However, if a car park with a meter was installed, what do you think people will do? They will still park anywhere they can along the road verges to avoid the charges.

“By charging people to use the car park and therefore access the beautiful countryside walks from Black Rock, I believe that you are taking this resource away from people.

“There are many local people who will stop walking there, as they won’t be able to pay daily for an hour’s dog walk.

“In addition, how many families in today’s economic climate can afford a few quid to just go for a walk? That amount of money could feed a family for a day.

“By building the car park and then charging people to use it, you would be withholding the resource from locals and people who can’t afford to pay to use it, which would be a very, very great shame.”

While Cheddar Parish Council supported the plans (subject to a bat survey being carried out), the Mendip Hills National Landscape management team said that it still had concerns about whether parking would persist on the verges.

Somerset Council refused the plans through the dedicated powers of its planning officers, rather than a public vote by its planning committee north (which handles major applications within the former Sedgemoor area).

Planning officer Dean Titchener said: “The proposal would bring some clear benefits by removing unmanaged verge parking, reducing associated erosion, and improving the overall functioning of the upper gorge.

“The amended design also shows that a car park could be accommodated without unacceptable landscape or highway impacts.

“However, these benefits are outweighed by the unresolved harms.

“Insufficient information has been submitted to demonstrate that the proposed development would avoid adverse effects on the North Somerset and Mendip special area of conservation.

“In the absence of adequate ecological evidence, the development would result in unacceptable harm to protected bat species.”

The National Trust has not yet indicated whether it intends to appeal the council’s decision.