Wildwood to offer parking on the beach

The struggle that beachgoers endure to find a parking spot will become less of an issue in one Jersey Shore community.

A concept two years in the works, Wildwood will offer beach parking in a designated area for this summer and beyond.

For a $10 fee, motorists with four wheel drive and all wheel drive vehicles can access the beach via Baker Avenue and park in a designated area between Wildwoods Convention Center and Morey’s Piers amusement area.

The city had planned to have the parking area operational for last summer, but mother nature scrapped those plans due to sand build-up reducing clearance in the tunnel under the boardwalk.

Parking access will be allowed between 10 a.m. until 6 p.m., and the parking fee will rise to $20 during special events.

Widely known for its wide, ever growing beaches, the walk from the parking area to the shoreline is about five minutes, NBC 10 reports. For a $3 fee each way, a shuttle will transport customers to the patch of sand of their choice.

Officials estimate the parking revenue to eclipse $100,000 this season, according to the NBC 10 report.

“We did a little research and saw in Brigantine which has been doing it for six or seven years now they actually make more money for their four by four parking on the beach than they do their beach fees,” Wildwood Commissioner Pete Byron told WHYY last year.

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WHYY’s Tom MacDonald contribute to this report.