Little Lever Precinct Car Park -1

The following article appeared in today's Bolton News.

Clear up village car park confusion, council urged

Tuesday 26th July 2011

Drivers are calling on Bolton Council to make its parking regulations clear after a vehicle was booked for parking on a private car park.

A ticket was issued to a car parked on the edge of the car park at the back of the Little Lever shopping precinct.

The vehicle was not in a marked parking bay but there are no signs to warn drivers they are liable to be fined.

However, it has now emerged the traffic warden gave the car a penalty charge notice for parking close to double yellow lines in Fletcher Street.

Driver Steve Hoyle, aged 50, appealed against the ticket but the council’s parking services department told him he did not have a case because the car park was a “pavement”.

He said: “I’ve parked there many times before without a problem and I’ve since seen other drivers park there without getting fined.

“There are cars on that car park in marked bays right on the edge of the road and they are more of an obstruction. It’s crazy — it just needs making clear.”

Mr Hoyle, who is licensee at Hardy Hall, Little Lever, had parked on the small triangle at the end of the car park.

But there are other marked bays in the car park that also come right up to the edge of the road, next to the yellow lines.

Paul Richardson, who owns the Village Tea Rooms, opposite the precinct, said: “It’s a car park.

There’s no indication you can’t park there.

“If this part is a pavement then surely it stretches all the way along the car park and through three marked parking bays.

“All we want is for it to be made clear so that no one else gets a ticket.”

A council spokesman said: “In light of concerns raised, an officer will visit the location within the next seven days to clarify whether any part of the car park is within the adopted highway.

“If necessary, we will then consider the best way to make this more clear.

“Cars parked in marked bays on the car park will not currently get a penalty charge notice from the council as the car park is not covered by a Traffic Regulation Order.”

The next post on this will give all the background details.