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| Traffic along the City Link Road at 5pm on January 24, 2020 |
It’s not just parking spaces that will be under pressure if Merton Meadow closes — traffic around Edgar Street could also get worse.
Merton Meadow, the 650-space council-owned car park next to Edgar Street, is earmarked for redevelopment.
The council has already approved plans to turn the northern section of the car park into a flood alleviation wetland, with work due to start soon. This will then allow a 400-home "urban village" to be built on the southern section of the car park.
Knock-on for traffic
A parking report, obtained by Bulls News under the Freedom of Information Act, warns of “excessive circulation” once car parks reach 90% occupancy. In plain terms, that means drivers looping around the city trying to find spaces.
On Saturdays, that could mean heavier queues on Newmarket Street, Blueschool Street, Commercial Road and the City Link Road, which all feed into the A49 and A465. For Bulls fans leaving it late for a 3pm kick-off, it risks being stuck in jams before even finding a space.
The scale of the problem is clear. Consultants PJA, who prepared the report, calculate that up to 490 cars could be displaced on a busy Saturday without Merton Meadow. Added to that are 193 parking permits, many used by NHS staff. Those permit holders will need reallocation too, increasing competition on Saturdays when football and hospital demand overlap.
The report is blunt about the tipping point: “Once car parks hit 90% capacity, drivers begin to struggle to find spaces,” with queues at entrances and “excessive circulation” on surrounding roads. December is forecast to be especially difficult, with demand exceeding total capacity between 12.30pm and 2.30pm.
It was December 2023, when three Hereford FC home games coincided with the Christmas shopping rush, when the consultants had the car park under their microscope. Demand peaked at up to 89% capacity at 2.30pm. However, the report notes the the 'actual peak' would be between 59% and 89%, when taking parking permits into account.
Inside Edgar Street that month, a 5–1 defeat to Scunthorpe drew 2,870 fans, 1,001 watched a 1–0 FA Trophy win over South Park and 2,707 turned out to see the Bulls edge Spennymoor 2–1.
Multi-storey option
The report does mention that St Martins 2 and Wye Street would have capacity to help once Merton Meadow is gone - but they have less than 100 spaces each and are a mile from Edgar Street, near Hereford Leisure Pool south of the River Wye.
One potential mitigation is the construction of a new multi-storey at the Country Bus Station. Two options have been costed, designed to replace some of the capacity lost at Merton Meadow.
The report says this could “mitigate and potentially consolidate parking supply”, but also cautions that usage depends on more than just numbers. “Destination, direction of arrival, pricing and type of car parking among others would all influence individual decision making,” it notes.
But the project needs funding and depends on the new Transport Hub being delivered, work on which has only just begun.
For supporters, the location is less convenient than Merton Meadow, meaning it may ease pressure across the city but not necessarily provide the same quick access to Edgar Street.
This article is part of an original Bulls News investigation into the future of Merton Meadow and what its closure means for Hereford supporters. More to follow.