Lincolnshire pavement parking is blighting lives - councillor

Councillor Colin Matthews said the path of local farmers' "massive vehicles" were often blocked by parked vehicles creating "regular log jams"

Dangerous parking is "blighting the lives" of some Lincolnshire residents, a senior councillor has claimed.

Almost 400 complaints about bad parking were made in one year, according to the county council.

Councillor Richard Davies said "reckless" drivers were stopping wheelchair and pushchair users from accessing pavements.

He said the local authority would ask the Department for Transport for "the powers to do something".

Mr Davies, portfolio holder for highways, said a total of 387 complaints had been made about parking with 20 complaints relating to HGVs.

"People are blocking pavements, blocking roads meaning people are struggling to get by," he told a full council meeting.

Labour councillor Rob Parker said pavement parking "forced pedestrians and families with pushchairs into the road and oncoming traffic"

Conservative Mr Davies said another issue was drivers who parked on verges "chewing them up, spreading mud all over the road and creating big ruts".

"We're looking at hot spots and working with the Department for Transport to say 'can we have some powers to do something' because this is a real blight on some people's lives."

The councillor said there were "no easy answers" and banning people from parking on pavements got "very expensive, very quickly".

"By the time you've put up signs and arranged for patrols, you're looking at £10,000 a year for a 100-metre stretch of pavement," he added. 

The council passed a motion to work with Lincolnshire Police and enforcement teams to emphasise the importance of parking properly, the Local Democracy Reporting Service said.