Narrow and dingy
2
2
Date of visit: September 2025
I am a disabled person. I have experience of challenges around: a hidden impairment and moving around.
I use or have experience of: hidden impairment, powerchair, walking aid, wheelchair
Overall Rating
Poor
The main point in favour of West Street multi-storey car park is probably its location close to North Pier, the Grand Theatre, Winter Gardens and Blackpool Opera House. There are other car parks closer to the latter two, but West Street is larger than the Alfred Street car park and open slightly later than the Houndshill multi-storey car park. Floors 2 and 3 have step-free access via a small lift and there are electric vehicle charging points and accessible parking spaces on floor 2. Floor 3 is on top of the building and has no roof, which actually means you get a lovely view of Blackpool Tower. Generally, I did not feel super comfortable there. It was fine, but with the winding layout and it being a bit-run down, it did not feel like a very safe place.
Disabled Access In and Around
Average
As far as I could tell, West Street multi-storey car park has three levels, none of which are at street level. There is a stairwell and a lift connecting the entrance on the ground floor to the three levels above. When you come in from the street, there is a slight incline up to the lift and the bottom of the stairs with handrails on the left side. The lift is small, not quite large enough for me to turn in my powerchair. There is a mirror at the back, which is of some help when backing out, but I was still very careful because I did not want to go backwards down the stairs! There are no handrails. The buttons are on the right as you enter and they have raised symbols, no Braille. They started out as silver on black (green for level 0), but all except for level 1 are quite worn now. On level 1, there is a long corridor and five more steps down between the lift and the door to the car park. There are railings on both sides and bright yellow contrast markings on the edges of the steps. The doors from the stairwell to the parking area are heavy single metal doors with a small vertical bar handle and a window strip. When coming from the stairwell, the doors on level 1 and 2 open to the inside right and the door on level 3 opens to the inside left. None of the doors are automatic, but the door to level 3 was propped open when I visited. Level 2 has 2 accessible parking spaces right by the door to the stairwell and 2 more around the corner, where you also find 4 family parking spaces. There is a walkway going through columns in the middle of the level that takes you to more parking and the EV chargers. There is a little bit of space at the side of the parking spaces, but there are also columns, which make navigating it a bit harder. There are 3 electric vehicle charging points, all wall-mounted without cables. One terminal with outlets on either side is provided by Blackpool Council and there are instructions on the wall (white on purple) telling you how to pay via ScanPay. The other terminal only says “EV: SevuriCharge” on it and there are no instructions on how to use it, so I am unsure whether it is a public charging point. Level 3 is open to the outside. When you come through the door from the stairwell, you are in a little sheltered nook with the payment terminals. There is a bit of a bump down on your right towards the parking. When you leave the nook, you are right at the top of the ramp where cars would be coming up, which does not feel very safe. There are 5 more Blue Badge parking spaces up on this level, around to your right. The payment terminals are located on the carparking levels. They are tall, so the buttons are a little high but just about in reach for me from a seated position.
Accessible facilities: Lift to some areas, Step-free entrance, Step-free access to most areas
Parking & Transport
Good
I travelled to this place by walk or wheel
West Street multi-storey car park is quite centrally located in Blackpool North, just one block from the Promenade by the southbound North Pier tram stop. There are several bus stops at the sides of the building on Market Street and Corporation Street serving lines 5, 5A, 5B, 5C, 7, 7A, 8, 10, 11, 11A, 12, 12A, 24, 68 and 68C. Blackpool North station is a 0.4-mile/10-minute walk or wheel or 1 tram stop away.
Accessible facilities: Dedicated on-site parking, Electric Vehicle Charging
Staff
There is a little office next to the lift on the ground floor, but there was no staff there when I visited and I did not encounter anyone as I looked around.
