MOTORISTS are being warned new rules for free parking are coming into force across Wyre Forest next week.

Wyre Forest District Council will be introducing a system in its car parks which means tickets must be displayed during free parking periods across the district.

Council bosses say by displaying a free ticket people will help the council measure how popular free parking schemes are.

When taking advantage of free schemes, customers need only to obtain a free ticket from the machine and display as normal. The ticket is only valid during the allocated days and times.

Free parking initiatives are available in all three towns – on a Wednesday, Bromsgrove Street car park in Kidderminster is free between 10am and 4pm, while Gardners Meadow car park in Bewdley and Severn Meadows 1 in Stourport also offer free parking between 10am and 4pm on a Thursday.

Revised parking charges in council car parks will be implemented from Monday (October 5). These have been limited to only a small number of car parks.

Councillor Ian Hardiman, cabinet member for operational services, said: “We are pleased to offer free parking for residents and visitors.

“By introducing a free ticket scheme, we can learn and build on the success of our existing free parking initiatives.

“Don’t forget to get your free ticket from the machine on allocated days and times and display it clearly in your vehicle.

"This is about encouraging people to use our free car parking scheme and we are not focusing on issuing penalty notices to people during the free periods.

"Initially, if someone forgets to put a ticket from the machine on their vehicle during the free period they won’t be issued with a parking fine.

"We will review this once the new system is established."

The district council is again offering free parking for the festive season. It will be available in council car parks after 4pm from Saturday, November 14, through to Sunday, January 10, 2016.

This festive free parking offer runs in conjunction with all other schemes.

For more information visit wyreforestdc.gov.uk/parking.