Meadowhall issues new parking advice for disabled shoppers after car park closure times announcement

Instead, they will need to park in the Orange Zone car park zone 4, next to the Oasis Dining Quarter entrance, which is now open 24/7.

In announcing the changes, Meadowhall said that the changes will help it become “more energy efficient and environmentally friendly.”

The move sparked concern among customers who feared the changes would mean cinema visitors’ cars could get trapped over night and there would be a shortage of parking for disabled people.

Meadowhall has made efforts to further explain its changes and answer the questions of concerned customers.

Responding to the announcement one Twitter user wrote: “Can you confirm how this works with disabled parking spaces. 4 is not enough as it is and surely you can't expect people to walk from other end of orange car park?”

A spokesperson for Meadowhall replied: “You would still be able to park in Orange Zone 1 disabled parking but lighting will be reduced 1 hour after store closures. If you need any assistance at all please let us know.”

Stephen Brown asked if the electric vehicle chargers in the Green car park would still be accessible after trading hours.

The Meadowhall response was: “You can still park there, the car park will now have reduced lighting if later than one hour after closing. We do also have EV chargers launching in the orange car park very soon.”

Martyn Hinchcliffe added in a Facebook comment on The Star’s story: “If you pitch up at 6pm, park near Boots, for example, spend three hours shopping/having something to eat, then go & see a movie that is 2 1/2 hours long, Meadwhall closes its doors while you are in the cinema and your car is still in the now closed car park outside Boots. How often is that going to happen?”

No solution to this has been provided by Meadowhall, and drivers will need to ensure they do not leave their car in a car park that would close while they were in the cinema.