Yahoo News Road closed AGAIN after shoppers forced to park on pavement in workmen bungle
Council bosses in East Riding of Yorkshire have been left red-faced after admitting that parking bays in Goole town centre were painted too narrow for cars to fit into.
The blunder occurred on Pasture Road, where workmen, as part of a £265,000 resurfacing project, marked out parallel parking spaces at a mere 5.5ft (1.7m) wide, despite instructions specifying a width of 6.5ft (2m). This error falls short of the British Parking Association's minimum standard of 5' 11'' (1.8m) for on-street parallel parking, leading some drivers to park with wheels on the kerb to stay within the lines.
Goole's mayor, Anthony Raspin, has called for the new markings to be corrected following local residents' complaints about the inadequate space size. Consequently, workers will now have to remove the incorrect markings and repaint them, resulting in another road closure scheduled for Wednesday.
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Local worker Andie Appleyard expressed frustration, saying: "I think it just sums Goole up and everything they do at the moment. They never do it correctly, it's all a bit of a rush job."
Appleyard also criticised the council's approach, adding: "Someone complains about pot holes and they've solved that situation, but then they've made another job for themselves.
"And we're just ploughing money into ridiculous jobs when there's a lot of other things it could be going towards."
The road was resurfaced on November 1 as part of a trial for environmentally friendly methods for repairing roads in the county, championed by council chiefs. It was one of two schemes in the costing around £265,000 using a product developed by Tarmac that incorporates granulated rubber from recycled tyres.
But after the road was re-layed, the parallel parking spaces in the street were painted just 5.5ft (1.7m) wide, smaller than the average car width of (5' 11") 1.8m. Andie added that it was off-putting for motorists who were confused by parked cars poking out of the bays and fearing their road space was reduced.
Town Mayor Anthony Raspin went down and measured the spaces himself and told locals on social media: "Pasture Road has just had its makeover and looks great.
"But I have been down with my tape measure and the bays area are 1.72m, which is less than the guidelines. The average car is wider than that.
"The local traffic wardens are aware and said as long as people park sensibly and as close in the bays as possible, they should not get a ticket.
"It is unfair to the shops down Pasture Road losing customers because people don't want to park there.
"It is also unfair for people to get a ticket if the spaces are smaller than the average car.
"It will have to be rectified, the council are aware of it and we are on with getting it changed. "
An official from East Riding of Yorkshire Council has acknowledged a discrepancy in parking bay sizes, stating: "We investigated the size of parking spaces at this location and they fall slightly short of that guide width.
The spokesperson added: "We will therefore carry out work to change the widths of these spaces to 2m and are due to do this on Wednesday 27 November under a road closure. "
He also thanked the community for their patience, saying: "Thank you to residents for bearing with us while we rectify this situation. Drivers can park as normal and no parking fines will be issued in the meantime. ".
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