Initiative follows success of last year's scheme
There will be free parking in Wimbledon's council car parks during the Christmas weekends.
The move will save the average Wimbledon shopper £6 for a four-hour shop and is being seen as a boost to local shops.
It covers all car parks owned and managed by Merton Borough Council, apart from the Waitrose car park in Raynes Park, on the following dates: Nov 30, Dec 1, 7, 8, 14, 15, 21, 22, 23 and 24.
Council leader Stephen Alambritis said: "It effectively costs us £65,000, and we're doing it to encourage shoppers to use our local shops. It was well received last year."
The council's car parks are:
Wimbledon
Broadway car park
Hartfield Road car park
Queens Road car park
St George's Road car park
Mitcham
Elm Nursery Car Park - London Road
Raleigh Gardens Car Park
St Mark's Road Car Park
Sibthorpe Road Car Park
Morden
Kenley Road car park
Morden Station car park
York Close car park
Peel House lower level short stay car park
Morden Park car park.
Meanwhile, Merton’s Conservative councillors have now unveiled their 5 point parking pledge. If the Conservatives win control of Merton Council at the next local elections in May 2014, they have pledged the following:
• The costs of resident and visitor parking permits will be frozen
• Merton residents will enjoy 1 hour free parking in all council run car parks all year round
• Evening charges will be abolished in our town centre car parks
• A minimum of 20 minutes free parking will be introduced in all our shopping parades
• New parking machines will be rolled out to provide more ways to pay and refund unused time
Councillor Janice Howard, Merton Conservatives' Transport Spokesman, said: "What Merton’s residents, businesses and visitors need is a parking revolution.
"It's not good enough just to tinker around the edges without tackling the real underlying problems of expensive parking throughout the year, tariff schemes which push visitor traffic onto residential side streets in the evening and machines which don’t reflect the modern age where coins aren't always ready to hand."
November 22, 2013