WESTBURY Town Council have asked a highways engineer to review parking in the area where Frogmore Road meets the A350, following a resident’s complaint about non-residents parking outside the houses.
A resident approached the town council to support a proposal for a residents’ parking permit in the area as they say the space outside their home is often being used by people who don’t live there, but the town council said they could not support this until the majority of residents in the area were also in support.
In a letter to the town council the resident says, “For many years we have had problems parking anywhere near our houses, but it’s just getting so bad. The hairdressers at Fore Street all park outside our houses, along with their customers, and also people who live down Maristow Street and surrounding areas. We would all pay for permits if you could change it to permit-only parking.”
This issue was discussed at a meeting of the highways, planning, and development committee of the town council last month, with councillors agreeing that there are issues in the area with parking, HGVs, and traffic accessing the A350.
Speaking at the meeting Cllr Mike Sutton said, “This issue has been prevalent for as long as I’ve been in Westbury; the houses in the area do not really have access, and I know that some people set off for work and come back by the end of the day to find that someone has parked there for the duration. You end up driving round half of Westbury to find a space.
“A one-way scheme was suggested previously, but this was turned down. Parking and the right to park is a problem, not just all over Westbury, but also across the country – there is no right to park outside your house, but people expect to.”
Cllr King said, “There is a lot for Wiltshire Council to think about with this area. Frogmore is an extremely busy road due to its access to the A350 and because there is a shop at its head. It is also extremely narrow, and the funnel junction is inappropriate, as people coming down from Trowbridge Road often enter the road at high speeds and are immediately met with parked cars that they have to avoid.”
Cllr Carole King added, “The idea of installing residents’ permit for those on Frogmore Road is something that has been discussed before, but the issue is that there is a cost involved that residents may not want to pay, as it can be quite high.
“I have noticed in the past that people park in that area when they go to some of the local premises as a way to park closer without a charge. It’s a location that is used by lots of people who are trying to access businesses in the town centre.
“I spoke to the hairdressers mentioned by the resident and the staff informed me that they haven’t been parking there for six months or so – the main reason being that their vehicles are often scratched, keyed, or even bumped into by other vehicles, which has caused significant damage. They don’t have any parking behind their shop, however there seems to be some spaces that are not being used by residents, so they are occupying them instead.”
