The Voice of Spalding and South Holland
A councillor says she’s walked out in front of cars driving through Spalding town centre amid frustrations motorists are ignoring day time restrictions on vehicles.
Concerns have been expressed that since lockdown in March motorists have been ignoring the ban on vehicles driving through Hall Place and Market Place between 10am and 4pm Monday to Sunday with many parking in the latter.
Councillors urged Lincolnshire County Council’s traffic officers to oversee the matter at a recent meeting of the Spalding Town Forum, though as previously stated in an article on the matter in The Voice, Lincolnshire Police are the authority responsible.
Coun Roger Gambba-Jones said: “Either the people of Spalding want to drive into the town centre or they don’t.
“Make your minds up people and tell the county council one way or other and decide if you want to de-pedestrianise the town centre.
“At the moment we have the wild west. You have people driving through, parking where they like and it is chaos.
“It’s dangerous, frustrating and we don’t seem to be able to get anywhere when asking the county council to enforce civil parking enforcement and to step into that area and do something for us.
“It’s of great frustration and an embarrassment. Something should be done. There’s a damn great sign on the approach to the town centre that serves absolutely no purpose whatsoever.
“Unless you get the basics right, doing any nice fancy stuff to improve the town centre seems to be a bit of nonsense.”
Coun Angela Newton agreed, saying: “It’s chaotic, not just with cars, but with cyclists too who probably cause more danger to shoppers perhaps than some of the vehicles do.
“Street wardens do a wonderful job but probably in the circumstances we are not able to get more.”
Coun Christine Lawton said: “I have walked in front of them and I have been promised the county will sort these traffic restrictions out.”
But in July Sergeant Rick Mosley, of Lincolnshire Police, told The Voice: “There is a traffic order in place which places restrictions on vehicles entering the Market Place between certain times of the day, depending on the day of the week and market days – with certain exceptions.
“The Neighbourhood Policing Team patrol the town centre frequently and will deal with any offences they come across, and will continue to do so.
“I would ask that should anyone be concerned about vehicles breaching the order, they contact Lincolnshire Police to report it through the website or by calling 101.”
