Fresh concerns have been raised over relaxed Sunday parking rules in Ipswich as some roads have faced blockages from inappropriate parking.
Sunday parking in Ipswich allows people to park on single yellow lines as long as it does not cause an obstruction, but residents in one road have said the situation is becoming dangerous.
Glenn Williamson, local businessman and resident of Lower Brook Street – which has single yellow lines – has lived there since 2006, and said it has been a huge problem.
“Due to irresponsible parking often the road will block, often taking some time to sort,” he said. “If an ambulance or fire engine was needed on a Sunday they simply wouldn’t be able to access the road.
“It happens in other roads – I have a property in George Street and I think it affects a number of other roads.”
Mr Williamson has captured some of the blockages – including an instance of an ambulance struggling to squeeze through a gap because of cars parked on both sides of the road.
The issue is also affecting those with guide dogs, who find that there is not enough room on the pavement and forces guide dogs to lead their owners into the road.
Emma Free, whose guide dog Ivy struggled to navigate the blocked pavement, said: “This is a real problem affecting guide dog users. In many cases it affects the confidence of the guide dog user in going out and in some cases can cause dangerous situations putting the guide dog user and dog in real harm.”
While parking in Ipswich is enforced by Ipswich Borough Council, matters of irresponsible parking on yellow lines is a highways obstruction issue which is dealt with by police, according to a borough council spokesman.
Mr Williamson has called on Suffolk County Council to make the road double yellow lines which cannot be parked on at any time.
He said that he had raised the issue last year with the county council, but no solution was done.
A Suffolk County Council spokesman said: “While we are aware of issues in Lower Brook Street, all requests are funded by ward members. We receive a lot of requests for yellow lines in Ipswich and these have to be reviewed against a number of conditions, including analysing collision history, the time it would take to deliver the scheme, cost and scale of the issue.”
The East of England Ambulance Service said it had so far not had any concerns reported, but that it was important emergency services were able to easily navigate roads.
A spokesman said: “We always appreciate motorists giving the best access possible to our vehicles as every minute counts in an emergency, so we always ask the public to park with consideration.
“This means thinking about blind spots for oncoming vehicles, ensuring an ambulance can travel through the road without problems and helping our crews park very close to the address we’re called to.”
A spokeswoman for Suffolk police said they could issue penalties for obstructions, and urged people to park responsibly.
“Enforcement of parking restrictions within Ipswich is primarily the responsibility of the borough council,” she said.
“However, police officers can deal with vehicles that are causing an obstruction and will issue penalty notices if appropriate.
“Officers carry out patrols when they can, but sadly there remain a number of drivers who persist in parking inconsiderately, which can also affect the safety of both pedestrians and road users.
“We would urge all drivers to park legally, considerately and responsibly, and to think about the effect their behaviour may have on others.”
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