You are Here : Business  >  City Centre Management
Thursday , March , 28 2024
| Language and Accessibility

Shopping in Carlisle

Plan your journey

When visiting the city centre please plan ahead. Think about how you will be travelling and if you’re driving, where you’ll park and what route you’ll take into the city centre.

Carlisle’s city centre is a safe place to visit and as it is pedestrianised, provides lots of space for social distancing. 

City Centre officers will also be out and about to help and advise people.

Remember to Stay Local and Shop Local. Please support our independent traders.

Please read the FAQs for more information.

Frequently Asked Questions

Please follow safe distancing measures and look out for signage. We are also asking people to be aware of all the latest public safety messages.

  • Do not leave home if you or anyone in your household has symptoms.
  • Maintain social distancing at all times wherever possible.
  • Wear face coverings in enclosed public spaces where social distancing isn’t possible including public transport.
  • Bring along your own hand sanitiser. There will also be hand sanitiser or handwashing facilities when entering premises (to reduce the risk of transmission by touching products while browsing).
  • Keep contact to a minimum and try to use contactless payments if available.
  • Some shops will need to limit the number of customers, so you may be asked to queue outside.
  • Shop alone where possible, unless you need specific assistance.

When shops reopen, toilets will also reopen in the usual locations.

We will also put in place hand sanitising points. These are located at various points within the city centre.

City Centre officers will be out and about to help and advise people, while police officers will look to ensure people are observing the safe distancing rules.

All our car parks are open and charges in place.

When using the car parks, customers are advised to follow social distancing guidance and if possible, pay by card or contactless rather than use cash and park in alternate bays. The majority of our car parks provide contactless payment options including credit/debit card, mobile phone using MiPermit, Apple Pay and Android Pay.

The locations of car parks can be found at: www.carlisle.gov.uk/parking

Disabled blue badge holders can park for free in any parking space in all of our car parks when displaying their blue badge and a clock disc displaying your time of arrival (a note stating your time of arrival is also acceptable). This allows up to three hours of free parking. Please note Marks & Spencer’s car park is a two-hour maximum stay.

Blue badge holders can also park in on street pay and display bays when displaying their blue badge. These are managed by Cumbria County Council.

You are encouraged to use a car, cycle or walk if you can.

The government has indicated that people should not use public transport unless it is essential. Buses and trains are available, but you need to check their timetables, routes and safety advice. Face coverings are mandatory on public transport.
Taxis can access the city centre as normal.

You can cycle to the city centre and park your bikes at dedicated cycle parks/bays.

You should not ride your bike through the city centre.

You can park your bike at existing cycle parks/bays: the Civic Centre/Lowther St Car Park, The Lanes opposite Iceland, the south end of Scotch Street near the Natwest bank and Cumberland Building Society, Bank Street near the HSBC and Castle Street outside Crown and Mitre hotel. 

The County Council, as the local highway authority, continues to seek and secure additional funding for cycling and walking improvements in the County. Further information can be found on Cumbria County Council's website.

Our street cleaning team will be cleaning the city centre on a more frequent basis. Please don’t litter; put your rubbish in the bins provided.

Please check the retailer’s website or for shops and businesses based with The Lanes Shopping Centre, visit https://www.lanescarlisle.co.uk/

We have been working closely with businesses to ensure they are fully aware of the government guidance. A reopening checklist and guidance is available on our website.

Carlisle’s indoor market is based within the city centre on Scotch Street.

In addition to hand sanitisation points, there is also be one-way system to follow. Please look out for the signage and guidance in place. The food providers will be reopening their stalls as takeaways but following government guidance, there will be no seating areas.

For updates follow The Market Hall on Facebook.

City Centre map (click to expand)

 Contact Details

This A to Z of services list provides links to service pages alphabetically