Parking in Devon

For those of you who are planning to use your car to get around Devon, you’ll need to make sure you know where to find the region’s car parks, as well as the costs and any parking restrictions that may be in place.

Public Car Parks

Many of the purpose built public carparks are managed by the various district councils and the charges and times will change depending on where you are.

You can find more detailed information at the links below:

• East Devon District Council
• Exeter City Council
• Mid Devon District Council
• North Devon District Council
• South Hams District Council
• Teignbridge District Council
• Torridge District Council
• West Devon Borough Council

On street parking

There are various places around the county where you can park on the street. As with the purpose built car parks, the times and charges vary across Devon, but you will find clear signage so you know where to park and what the restrictions are. Make sure to check carefully before leaving your car as Bank Holidays and Weekends may have different rules to the rest of the week. Charges will apply on all Bank Holidays, except Christmas Day, unless otherwise stated on all pay and display on street parking.

The payment machines have the option to use cash or your mobile phone. You can download apps to pay for your parking or where available, contactless payment systems with ApplePay and Googlepay.

Visitor’s Parking

There are some resident’s parking schemes in place across Devon. If you are renting a private self-catering property or guesthouse, it may be possible to purchase a visitor’s permit allowing you to park. Make sure to ask when making your booking to find out what parking is available and how to go about purchasing visitor’s parking.

Essential Visitor Permits are available to residents and guests who are elderly or disabled, with or without a blue badge. The permit is retained by the resident, so again speak to the property owners and managers to see if you are eligible for this.

Blue Badge Parking in Devon

If you have a Blue Badge, parking in Devon applies to on street parking as badge holders have free use of parking meters and pay and display bays.

You may also be exempt from limits on parking times and can park for up to three hours on yellow lines except where there are other restrictions. Make sure to check the signage for local information and have your Blue Badge clearly displayed to avoid fines.

Park and Ride

There are park and ride services available throughout Devon.

The park and ride services in and around Exeter City Centre are operated by Stagecoach South West, click here for full details. There are car and cycle spaces at all the park and ride sites in Exeter, with park and cycle working the same way as park and ride, it is free but you do need to apply for a permit. 

For park and ride services in the Torbay area, there is a park and ride in Brixham, which runs between 9am and 8pm every day during the summer and between 9am and 6pm during the winter.
Find out more here.

There are three park and ride sites in Plymouth, details can be found here .

During the busier seasons, it is recommended that visitors to Dartmouth use the Park and Ride Service which is located at the top of town. You can either pay via coins or by using the RingGo app.

Most park and ride car parks are locked after 7.30pm and reopen at 6am on days that the service operates. Overnight parking is not permitted at the majority of sites, please check local information for further details.

The National Bus Pass is valid on park and ride services after 9.30am Monday to Friday and all day on weekends.