Have your say on proposed new parking restrictions

by Lisa Reeves
Friday 20th September 2019
Fri 20th Sep 2019

As many residents are aware, between 2017 and 2019 Cheshire East Council commissioned a parking review to gather evidence and understanding on the current parking situation in Wilmslow.

Following its assessment of the parking review, the Council has decided to proceed with the formal advertising of the proposed parking restrictions which will be introduced in phases.

Cheshire East Council is proposing to make Orders which will introduce a prohibition of waiting by vehicles at all times and on all days on the following lengths and sides of roads:

Knutsford Road, Wilmslow (south side) – from a distance of 18 metres southwest of its junction with Gravel Lane for a distance of 254 metres in a north-easterly direction; from its junction with Alderley Road for a distance of 44 metres in a westerly direction.

Knutsford Road, Wilmslow (north side) – from a distance of 21 metres southwest of its junction with Gravel Lane for a distance of 35 metres in a north-easterly direction; from a distance of 63 metres northeast of its junction with Gravel Lane for a distance of 170 metres in a north-easterly direction; from its junction with Fulshaw Cross round about for a distance of 23 metres in a south-westerly direction

Gravel Lane, Wilmslow (north side) – from its junction with Knutsford Road for a distance of 87 metres in a north-westerly direction

Gravel Lane, Wilmslow (south side) – from its junction with Knutsford Road for a distance of 24 metres in a north-westerly direction; from a distance of 52 metres northwest of its junction with Knutsford Road for a distance of 15 metres in a north-westerly direction

Nursery Lane, Wilmslow (east side) – from its junction with Gravel Lane for a distance of 15 metres in a north-westerly direction

Beechway, Wilmslow (west side) – from its junction with Gravel Lane for a distance of 13 metres in a north-easterly direction

Beechway, Wilmslow (east side) – from its junction with Gravel Lane for a distance of 23 metres in a north-easterly direction

Alderley Road, Wilmslow (east side) – from a distance of 75 metres south of its junction with Donkey Lane for a distance of 563 metres in a northerly direction.

Alderley Road, Wilmslow (west side) – from a distance of 75 metres south of its junction with Donkey Lane for a distance of 188 metres in a northerly direction; From its junction with Bedells Lane for a distance of 40 metres in a westerly direction and 327 metres in a northerly direction.

A spokesperson for Cheshire East Council said "The first phase is to remove vehicles from Knutsford Road that are currently parking in an inconsiderate manner along the footway, causing an obstruction to pedestrians and other vulnerable road users. This parking also affects the free movement of traffic along Knutsford and reduces visibility close to junctions.

"Regarding Gravel Lane, the introduction of no waiting at any time restrictions is considered necessary to remove persistent parking from areas close to these junctions, which is hindering the free movement of traffic and access and is restricting visibility. The proposals have been kept to a minimum to only restrict those areas of highway where parking is hindering the free movement of traffic and reducing visibility."

Speaking about Alderley Road, they added "The first phase is to remove vehicles from Alderley Road that are currently parking in an inconsiderate manner along the footway, causing an obstruction to pedestrians and other vulnerable road users. This parking also affects the free movement of traffic along Alderley Road and reduces visibility close to junctions."

Copies of the draft orders and plans showing the restricted areas are available at Wilmslow Library.

Anyone wishing to object to the proposed Order, or make any other representations, can do so by emailing [email protected], and if making an objection you must specify the grounds on which it is made, by 10th October 2019.

Tags:
Car Parking Review, Parking, Parking
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Comments

Here's what readers have had to say so far. Why not add your thoughts below.

Laurie Atterbury
Friday 20th September 2019 at 7:44 pm
So, where will the vehicles that used to park in these locations park in future? Outside yet more Wilmslow residents’ homes no doubt?
David Jefferay
Friday 20th September 2019 at 10:03 pm
Hi Laurie, These restrictions are just to address the immediate safety and flow problem on those roads. It isn't to solve the parking problem so, I won't lie to you, yes there will be some displacement of those cars. The wider parking problem is clearly only going to be fixed by increasing carparking capacity so the council officers are working on a business case for just that (most probably a multistorey on Broadway meadows). I know that sounds like stalling and red tape (we all know it is needed) but it is public money so the council has to justify such big capital expenditure. We can't go putting more yellow lines down to stop inconsiderate parking until that extra capacity is there and people have somewhere else to park. As you point out, that has been the flawed approach in the past and the cars have just been pushed around the town. It's obviously going to take time to solve this problem but we are pushing as hard as we can.
Ryan Dance
Saturday 21st September 2019 at 9:00 am
Dear oh dear. 2 years to come up with plan for prohibition orders for a few busy roads. Just about sums up Cheshire east council. Incompetent. Inept. Inefficient. Bureaucratic waste of space.
Pippa Jones
Saturday 21st September 2019 at 4:43 pm
While the council is deliberating on the best way of providing additional parking capacity, could it also think about ways to encourage more people to use active travel? We have increasing rates of obesity and type 2 diabetes (even in the very young which was unheard of a couple of decades ago), air pollution causing strokes, heart attacks, asthma, cancer and miscarriages and very high levels of stress and anxiety which are well recognised to be alleviated by exercise. We also have a climate crisis. We would all be better off walking, cycling or travelling by bus or train. I recognise not everyone feels they can do this but why not take a two pronged approach? Build the car park, if that’s necessary, but use the roads freed from all day parking to provide proper separated cycle lanes; more cycle parking at Wilmslow station, and some decent cycle parking in schools. There are no dedicated cycle lanes in Wilmslow and the ones between Wilmslow and Handforth are a disgrace. Work with school students and parents to develop safe routes to schools, and allow children the freedom that people of my generation had to get themselves to school and back independently without being dependent on parents. We now have a very active cycling and walking commissioner in Cllr Suzy Akers-Smith and I am sure she would be happy to advise. Just concentrating on car parking is not the solution. This is a whole systems issue that requires looking at the transport needs of everyone living, working in, or visiting the town. Otherwise we will just end up with an ugly car park, more traffic, more pollution, more carbon emissions, more illness and parents even more afraid to let their children go to school independently.
Mark Hewitson
Saturday 21st September 2019 at 7:37 pm
Well said Pippa Jones! There's a fantastic opportunity to modernise the town & make it safer for cycling. I also share the concerns of Laurie Atterbury. Its bad enough as it is with non residents parking ouside residents' houses.
Robert Taylor
Saturday 21st September 2019 at 9:54 pm
I feel we need to have a resident only zones surrounding the town centre.

Once again we don't require any more parking in the town it will just encourage more trips by private car.

Implementation of residential parking zones is a fairly simple exercise which has been introduced in many UK towns and cities.
David Jefferay
Sunday 22nd September 2019 at 7:55 am
Pippa, absolutely. If you look at the neighbourhood plan, for which there is the upcoming referendum, you will see it includes quite a bit on improvement of cycles routes and non-car travel. Coincidentally, before reading your post, I sent a link for the neighbourhood plan document to Suzie this morning so the aspirations are on her radar.
Robert, agree, and RoW has been asking for these for some years on roads such as Leaside. Unfortunately, Cheshire East has been reluctant to do it largely because it would require police enforcement. It is something we can push for though once we have alternative parking for the cars that would be displaced.
Chris Neill
Sunday 22nd September 2019 at 9:43 am
All these restrictions are welcome of course, and will help with the free flow and visibility,as well as tidy up the eyesores of cars strewn about the pavements at the entrance to our town. Parking was always a problem and seemed to further increase when that empty folly of an overdevelopment known as Chapelwood, began to cast its shadow over a corner of the town.
That, along with future over developments will continue to blight us as these are mindlessly given planning permission before any provision is given to town parking and infrastructure, with insatiable greed being the driving force.
I,m sure all residents will welcome new car parks which I hope will be the next priority, and I would very much welcome a ban on pavement and grass verge parking. What is it about having a car that brings out mindless and inconsiderate actions in people.
I am concerned that a lot of cars will now be parked further into the residential areas, some badly, some creating a social nuisance, some even abandoned for a week or two.We have already seen this increase on small roads off Chapel Lane and Moor Lane as well as others, so I truly hope that these restrictions are a start to some common sense solutions. It's a step forward.
John Duckworth
Sunday 22nd September 2019 at 1:17 pm
Well at least it's a start - The laybys on knutsford Road next to the Kings Arms roundabout should have the Yellow sign post removed and restrictions applied, these are used by at least 15/20 cars every day for all day parking - these people just don't want to pay for parking. Residents of Wilmslow are unable to use these laybys when visiting the dentist or doctors on Alderley Road.Stopping drivers parking on footpaths and grass verges should be implemented.The cost of putting up on lamp post notices stating " Parking Limited to 2 hours" should be implemented and will stop all day parking.As a result of these actions other areas that may be effected should be reported and very quickly restricting notices be applied. Cost of the above will be low and quickly implemented. The bottom line is the people responsible for all day parking are not residents of Wilmslow - proof of this can easily be observed on Saturday and Sunday when we get our town back.
Keith Chapman
Sunday 22nd September 2019 at 4:03 pm
David Jefferey - good progress. Instead of trying to get Cheshire East to stump up the money for the Broadway Meadow development why not consider getting proposals from car park operators to build and run the car park? They could be given a lease on the land reverting back to Cheshire East after 10 or 15 years. Wilmslow would get the additional parking capacity it needs quickly, and Cheshire East would own the new structure at the end of the lease. This project is attractive to an operator as offering a pretty well guaranteed income to pay back the infrastructure investment. I am sure you would get plenty of support across the political spectrum for this approach.
Pippa Jones
Sunday 22nd September 2019 at 6:20 pm
Some very interesting suggestions here; but I do hope that CEC don’t just put together a business case for the car park and leave the rest of the funding to chance. The neighbourhood plan does have some great suggestions for better transport plans but they have to be funded. So if the business case is just the car park, where does the money for the cycle lanes, cycle parks, better walkways etc come from? Can’t we have a budget for a whole systems change? Otherwise we’ll get the car park and nothing else. It does seem easier to get funding for car parks and roads than for active transport...and yet cyclists, pedestrians and public transport users take up a lot less space! So I do hope David can persuade CEC to look at our transport needs in the round, not just a one off business case for a car park and a desperate hope the problem is sorted....our transport needs in Wilmslow are more than just car parking.
Debi Whitney
Monday 23rd September 2019 at 1:47 pm
Chris Neil, I couldn't agree more, I have lived on South Oak Lane for nearly 12 years now and the increase of parking by "Wilmslow" commuters has increased 10 fold, even to the point where they are parking right on the corner of the lane by the park, which severely restricts any visibility for drivers turning into South Oak from Gravel Lane and on several occasions when walking the dogs, have had some near misses when trying to cross the road! Also have noticed that employees of Royal London seem to be using Stoney Lane and South Oak Lane as a new overflow carpark? I really am finding this all so very frustrating as well as dam right dangerous!
Chris Neill
Monday 23rd September 2019 at 9:19 pm
Thanks Debi,
Appreciate what you say. I think we have two major issues with cars in the town, the obvious one, that planners have done nothing to make provision for the increase. Second , the total lack of respect with illegal as well as anti social parking during the week and at weekends. I walked through the town on Sunday which felt like a break from Mondays onslaught,but there were still vehicles parked badly , some over pavements, some on the verges.
Would it be good if someone sent in a picture gallery of all these inconsiderates, or is this kind of evidence not PC. Maybe a PC could tell us?
Martin Bachman
Monday 23rd September 2019 at 9:41 pm
Instead of attracting more cars to the town centre by building a new car park, what about investing in a few free shuttle bus routes that would connect the station/town centre with all residential areas and which would take us to/from Alderley Edge, Macclesfield, Knutsford, Handforth, Altrincham, the airport, major workplaces like Waters, Royal London, Alderley Park... Not the existing ‘once-in-an-hour-on-a-good-day’ type services costing more than a taxi for short distances, but services that the community could rely on for work & life. 10min intervals including weekends, sheltered bus stops for the rainy days... I know, keep dreaming... But would it cost much more than a shiny new multi storey?
Pippa Jones
Tuesday 24th September 2019 at 6:21 am
What a great idea Martin... it would get many more of us out of our cars, help students get to school independently, reduce the need for parking, be better for cyclists and pedestrians...and would be healthier. Is Wilmslow ready to be radical with transport or are we destined to be stuck in our car culture which is really not good for any of us? Can you imagine what the town would look like with fewer cars? We seem to accept ever increasing numbers (and size) of cars in our town without question... and the associated pollution, congestion and health impacts. Isn’t it time to at least consider some novel alternatives? Could CEC investigate the logistics of Martin’s idea?
Brian Hall
Tuesday 24th September 2019 at 5:17 pm
I cannot understand why the phrase 'Park and Ride' has not been uttered. Surely there are enough fields/open spaces (not Green Belt) that could be converted into such a facility. If Council run this would be a useful source of income. It is not difficult to set up but no one seems to be interested.

Surely it cannot be the overwhelming desire of developers to build yet more bespoke, individually designed, 5 bedroomed, 3 bathroomed, double garaged starter homes for all but the normal person???
Pete Taylor
Tuesday 24th September 2019 at 9:04 pm
Good point, Brian. Perhaps the (admittedly Green Belt) fields in Styal should be concreted over for the benefit of Cheshire East, rather than Manchester Airport car parking?

In case anyone misses it... I’m totally against any loss of Green Belt and am merely making an ironic point here...
Cherry Dolden
Friday 27th September 2019 at 6:12 pm
It is all very well introducing areas where parking will no longer be allowed but this council fails to understand we need more designated car parks. Local residents are fed up with vehicles blocking their roads and pavements. For goodness sake councillors think about a multi storey car park near the leisure centre.
Vince Chadwick
Friday 27th September 2019 at 7:32 pm
Knutsford Road, just after the mini roundabout heading towards Row of Trees, was closed this afternoon following an accident. This section of road has lately been obstructed on both sides by parked cars and vans, causing traffic to weave through slowly, one at a time, one direction at a time.

I've no idea of the circumstances of today's accident, but one does wonder if this is what happens when the police fail to act when busy roads are obstructed like this.
David Smith
Monday 30th September 2019 at 7:44 am
I doubt that Cheshire East Council via our local councillors, who WE elect to address OUR concerns, will go far enough to satisfy them and be shown to be more sympathetic to out-of-towners who wish to park their vehicles anywhere that has no yellow lines or restrictions - especially on grass verges and pavements - just so they can avoid paying for parking and even leave a vehicle in our streets for free whilst they go off by train or fly from Manchester airport. I am particularly pessimistic that the changes requested by the residents of Copperfields and Osprey Drive will be satisfied. I will be delighted to be proved wrong.