Blaise Museum’s visitor numbers have plummeted since parking fees began, raising concerns about accessibility and community engagement.
Bristol: The Blaise Museum has really taken a hit with visitor numbers since they started charging for parking. It all kicked off in March 2022 when Bristol City Council put in those pay-and-display machines.
In the year after the charges were introduced, only 22,884 people visited the museum. But then it dropped to just 14,207 the next year. Ouch! Even though it bounced back a bit in 2024/25 with 18,005 visitors, that’s still almost 5,000 less than the year before the charges.
It’s tough to compare those numbers to the 1,687 visits in 2021/22 since that was during the pandemic recovery when the museum was only open limited days. Cllr Bador Uddin from the Conservative party asked the council about the parking fees and visitor stats at a recent forum.
The council responded, saying the parking facility serves the whole estate, not just the museum. They had set a target of £100,000 for parking income across all parks, and it looks like they made just over that at £101,398 for 2023/24.
It’s a bit of a mixed bag, really. While the council is happy with the income, the drop in visitors raises questions about how accessible the museum is for everyone.
