Alverstone residents have denounced plans for yellow lines and parking restrictions through the picturesque village.
Describing the Isle of Wight Council regulation as a “waste of resources” and “unnecessary work”, residents have been shocked to find rows of traffic cones laid through Alversone Road this week.
The council’s cabinet gave the go ahead for the District 4 Traffic Regulation Order on 9th May 2024, with restrictions in Alverstone, Arreton, Newchurch, Lake, Sandown and Shanklin.
Dyke: Unsurprisingly very few people noticed the notice
Karen Dyke, representing Alverstone’s protest group, said,
“A flurry of emails went out to Island Roads and IWCC to find that yellow lines and parking restrictions were imminent.
“The only local notice that this was being considered was an A4 piece of paper placed on a post in flooded December, with a December cut off for objections, unsurprisingly very few people noticed it – although the parish and ward councillor said it was a waste of resources and a safety issue.
“The majority of residents have enough drive and garage space so do not park on the road, but Alverstone is popular with families, walkers, and nature lovers, being next to the red squirrel trail and Alverstone Mead squirrel hide.
“They will now have to park further away and walk along the road with vehicles speeding by, as without cars acting as traffic calming there will be no reason for them to slow down.
“There will also be the danger of people being forced to park in the narrow lanes and passing places on the approaches to the village.”
Rural character will be “ruined”
Another resident who chose to remain anonymous said the yellow lines would “ruin” the village’s “rural character”.
They said,
“It is apparently for safety reasons (as assessed by road safety engineers), despite the fact that having lived in the village for over 12 years there have been no accidents associated with parking (to my knowledge).
“The councillor, the parish council and residents have objected to this unnecessary work to no avail.”
A council spokesperson said,
“We can confirm that the intention is to implement the Traffic Regulation Order for the parking restrictions on Alverstone Road.
“This has gone through the full and correct process for this Traffic Regulation Order (TRO) including an informal and formal consultation process.
“During May’s meeting cabinet members used this information to come to a decision based on the reasons provided for implementation, which was largely based on safety concerns.
“The impact of the new regulations will be subject to a periodic review and future changes are possible, if necessary, which would follow full due process.”
This article is from the BBC’s LDRS (Local Democracy Reporter Service) scheme, which News OnTheWight is taking part in. Some alterations and additions may have been made by OnTheWight. Ed
