Parking ban fear at Rushcliffe development where people feel 'bullied'

Signs went up giving people in Cotgrave just days of notice that they would not be able to park on their road for 16 weeks

People living near an ongoing Rushcliffe housing build feel "bullied" after a four-month parking ban was recently threatened on their road. Yellow signs gave people on Colston Gate in Cotgrave just days of notice that they would not be able to park their vehicles on the road for 16 weeks.

The signs caused particular stress for Suzy Palfreman, who has lived on Colston Gate for the last three years and is the only resident without off-road parking. She said: "I work as an emergency, on-call vet and so I need to be able to get to my vehicle quickly and to get all of my kit in.

"It's not ideal if I have to be walking five minutes up the road in an emergency. One of my neighbours has a carer going in twice a day as well as family, so there has to be parking for them too."

The 90-home development is the responsibility of Taylor Wimpey, who have received outline planning permission on a 4.74-hectare site. Days after the yellow signs went up warning of the parking ban, Ms Palfreman heard there had been no authority from the highways authority, Nottinghamshire County Council, for the signs to be up and they have since come down.

Yet other concerns remain, including the fact that negotiations about the parking situation remain ongoing between the county council and Taylor Wimpey. Ms Palfreman says she also has concerns about the safety of some of the work being carried out after one of her windows was damaged.

Other concerns include temporary traffic lights and access to the development site. In terms of the latter issue, Ms Palfreman says it was understood access to the site would initially be much further up the road.

An access point has now been created directly opposite her home, but Ms Palfreman says the road is too narrow and that some lorries have had to abandon entry attempts. Plant machinery and lorries with aggregate loads began using this access point from September 30.

Rushcliffe Borough Council is the planning authority in the area and a spokesperson said: "We granted outline planning permission for this residential development which included details of vehicle access. Subsequently the developer has requested permission for the highway works from Nottinghamshire County Council as the highways authority.

"The resident should the contact the county council with her concerns so they can liaise with the developer on her parking request." Nottinghamshire County Council has been contacted for comment.

Temporary traffic lights have also been installed on the road during the works, with Ms Palfreman saying an initial set of lights prevented her from parking outside her house. The Cotgrave resident said she has had to use her father's car for work recently as she feels that the minute she moves her own car, traffic lights will take its place and she will not be able to leave her car outside her home for months.

Ms Palfreman added: "It just feels like we're being bullied and there are a lot of older people who live in the area. It's awful because I just don't know what I'm going to be coming home to when I get back from work."

A spokesperson from Taylor Wimpey said: "The site access situated opposite the resident's property is a temporary structure, and was approved by the highways authority. We can confirm that we are working closely with DAB, the contractors on-site, and that they will contact the resident to discuss an appropriate temporary parking solution.

"This will enable the resident to park near her property, whilst also enabling the essential temporary traffic lights to be placed in the required location. We appreciate that the installation of the temporary site access may have inconvenienced the resident, and we will ensure they are updated on when the temporary site access will be removed."