News / Transport
RPZ bays painted over in barricaded street
Council contractors broke the East Grove resident’s parking stand-off with a dawn line-painting raid – only to have the markings blacked out just hours later.
The Montpelier street was the last road in the area to be included in the new paid-for street parking zone after residents set up a makeshift barricade.
But after a two-week stand-off contractors sneaked in at 5am on Friday to paint parking bays around already parked cars.
By 8am, though, the freshly-painted lines had been covered with a new layer of black paint.
The move is likely add to the overall cost of vandalism to signs and parking meters in the area, which the council estimates at about £30,000 so far.
Demonstrators on East Grove said their unrelated, peaceful protest would continue today on their street today when contractors are due to return to install signs.
City council transport director Peter Mann said: “It’s very disappointing to see further criminal damage of this nature, as we have respected the objectors’ rights to protest and make their feelings known over recent weeks but now need to move on and complete the works for the scheme to go live.
“The objectors are few in number and we know there are others living in East Grove who do wish their road to be included in the Montpelier Residents’ Parking Scheme.
“We take these matters very seriously and are working with the local police to resolve the situation, along with the acts of criminal damage to the parking machines and signs in the area last week.
The Montpelier zone goes live on Monday, July 6, with a two-week period of “soft enforcement” while people get used to the new parking arrangements.