‘Chaos’ forced woman with pram into road
CARS THOUGHTLESSLY LEFT ALL AROUND COUNTRY PARK
A SHOCKING video shows the moment a woman was forced to push a pram into a busy road with oncoming traffic because of inconsiderate parking outside Gedling Country Park.
Rob Wilson caught the incident on camera which shows how the woman was forced to go around cars parked on a grass verge and footpath on Spring Lane, Lambley.
Mr Wilson, 50, said: “I knew the lady with the pushchair was going to have to go on to the road, I just wanted to point out to people who visit the park that they shouldn’t really be parking like that.
“Particularly when a lady with a pushchair’s walking into oncoming traffic travelling at 40mph, with a baby in a pushchair.”
He described the parking in the area as “chaos” on Saturday afternoon, adding it had been a “consistent issue since the park opened”.
Councillor Michael Payne, Deputy leader of Gedling Borough Council and Nottinghamshire county councillor for Arnold North, is working on a new parking restriction scheme and has asked visitors to use the park’s free car parks.
The recent incident in Spring Lane happened on the first weekend of the country’s second lockdown.
Because the park’s official car parks were full, Mr Wilson, a training developer of Mapperley Plains, also said visitors “double parked” along Hartland Drive, that leads off Spring Lane to a housing estate.
“The parking was chaos,” said Mr Wilson, who’d walked to the area from his home.
“What seems to be happening here, people are driving to the park, seeing that the car parks are full and, instead of just thinking ‘I’ll either come back later or we’ll go elsewhere’, they’re just dumping their cars wherever they seem to want to – whether it’s blocking access to people’s accommodation and houses or blocking public footpaths and that type of thing.”
Councillor Payne said: “All our parks and open spaces have seen an unprecedented demand last weekend due to national lockdown restrictions.
“Even before the lockdown, Gedling Country Park was one of the most popular places for residents to visit and recently had a car park extension that doubled the number of spaces available.
“I understand the frustration of nearby residents about inconsiderate parking in and around Hartland Drive, which is why, as their local county councillor, I’ve been working with Nottinghamshire County Council and Via East Midlands on my request for a parking restriction scheme to assist local residents.
“I’m pleased that, subject to local consultation, a parking restriction scheme will be implemented in that particular locality in the not so distant future. In the meantime, we ask that visitors to Gedling County Park use the free car parks provided at the park itself.”
Gary Wood, group manager for highways and transport at the county council, said: “We would advise people, where possible, to walk or cycle to their local park, especially during the pandemic, but if they have to drive we would always urge people to be considerate to others and park safely and responsibly.
“I can confirm that we are considering the introduction of parking restrictions in hotspot locations in the area and these will be subject to local consultation. As soon as there is further information on these proposals we will share.”
Last year, residents called for the speed limit along Spring Lane to be reduced to 30mph to tackle traffic going past at “ridiculous speeds”.