Heathrow car park for Uber drivers after 'local distress'

Residents in Stanwell complained of Uber drivers blocking streets

Heathrow is to open a car park for private hire vehicles after local residents said Uber drivers waiting for fares were causing a "nightmare".

They were "parking in people's driveways, leaving rubbish in gardens" and "causing a huge amount of local distress", according to airport chief executive John Holland-Kaye.

Uber said it was "something we have been calling for for many months".

Heathrow already has a car park for black cabs.

'Drivers urinating'

It said the new dedicated parking area would open next month.

Mr Holland-Kaye said: "Private hire vehicles, Uber and their like, have just expanded phenomenally and started to cause a real issue to our local communities."

Drivers were "trying to get as close as possible to the airport to pick up a ride," he added.

Earlier this year Uber blocked bookings for drivers in the Surrey village of Stanwell Moor after residents complained of "nightmare" congestion and confrontations.

County councillor Robert Evans said residents were being stopped from parking outside their houses and he had heard reports of drivers urinating in the road as they were waiting for a long time.

Uber said it had changed its technology "back in January" so its "partner-drivers" would no longer receive requests if they were parked in residential streets around Heathrow.