Holidayparking chaosatthebeach

April 2014

THERE was parking chaos in Brittas Bay over the bank holiday weekend as the south and north car parks were closed on Friday and Saturday when hundreds of holidaymakers and daytrippers flocked to the popular beach.

John Swaby-Miller of Redcross was a visitor to Brittas Bay on Friday and was taken by surprise when he discovered the car parks weren’t open.

‘I arrived in the morning and there were already a good few cars parked along the side of the road. The entrance to the car park was locked up and by the afternoon there were vehicles parked everywhere. It has to be a hazard, especially if an emergency services vehicle has to attend an incident. I just can’t understand how the car park wasn’t open for what is always one of the busiest weekends of the year.

‘I felt sorry for local residents as well. Most seem to keep the grass verges outside their homes well trimmed. It has to be frustrating to have someone park on these verges and cause all sorts of damage.’

Paul Leahy lives locally and has long been critical of traffic congestion during spells of good weather, as motorists leave their cars on the side of the road once they discover the carparks are closed.

‘It’s very dangerous, especially for families with young children. You have cars parked on both sides of the road so people have to walk out on the road in order to head toward the beach. It also provides huge problems for the emergency services. A fire engine would never have been able to get past all that traffic on Friday and Saturday if they were called out to an emergency.’

The south beach car park was then opened up on Easter Sunday and Bank Holiday Monday with motorists allowed to park for free, but the north beach car park remained closed.

The car parks used to be operated by Wicklow County Council but have been outsourced after tenders for their operation and maintenance were sought in 2012. No-one from Wicklow County Council was available for comment.