Archive - Originally posted on "The Horse's Mouth" - 2010-06-29 11:15:19 - Graham Ellis
From the Chamber of Commerce Administrator ...
Chris Major, Parking Services Manager from Wiltshire Council has asked [me] to advise you of changes to King Street Car Park in Melksham regarding the lorry park which is going to take effect c. 5th July 2010. I would be grateful if you could pass this information on to anyone who is affected by this change.
The Message, as being relayed:
You will be aware that residents have been campaigning to get the lorries removed from this car park as it is surrounded by residential properties. An environmental health officer visited the site at the start of the year and found that noise levels would amount to a statutory nuisance and that legal action could well be upheld against Wiltshire Council. To this end Wiltshire Council commissioned our term contractors to investigate alternative sites for overnight parking for lorries in the immediate area.
The study report suggested a number of suitable sites, but the preferred candidate was an area situated on the premises of the Leekes department store on the A350. Wiltshire Council had entered into preliminary talks with Leekes and were informed that the site would be available for a substantial annual rental charge. At this current time, with funding being cut from all departments it is felt that prudence should be applied to this situation.
A high proportion of lorries regularly using this overnight stop have been established as being local companies. It is expected that the drivers of these lorries live locally within Melksham and are using the parking facility as a more convenient place to park and start their working day rather than returning to their local depot. This of course contravenes the agreements placed by VOSA on the use of the companies registered 'depot' and further aggravates the local residents.
The resolution at the meeting on held on Tuesday 15th June held in Melksham Town Hall was to close the park to lorry, buses and coaches through a change of the traffic regulation order and to look at the outcomes of this closure over a 6 - 12 month period rather than considering to proceed straight away with the Leekes option. It was felt that because a large percentage of lorries were found to be local, the impact on the closure of this park would not be as great had the the local lorries not had legitimate depots to return to.
Having looked further into the current order placed upon the parking facility, the TRO team have indicated that a temporary closure of the parking facility for the above vehicles can be met with immediate effect, which is an option the TRO team and the Parking services team are now pursuing. This has been agreed in principle by the Cabinet member and actions towards purchasing signage etc has been initiated.
Please see below the position statement regarding the lorry park sent by the Parvis Khansari, Service Director Strategic Services.
"The process to amend the Order for permanent ban for vehicles over a revenue weight of 3500kg has started.
"Research has uncovered that the Order by West Wilts District Council (dated 2008) allows for temporary closure of the designated area of the car park used by HGV's. Legal advice is that it can be used to apply an immediate ban, whilst the Order for a permanent ban is advertised and put in place.
"Therefore the signage to prohibit HGVs has been ordered and these are scheduled for delivery on 5th July. The ban will be enforced as soon as the signage is installed, and fencing may be put around the lorry parking bays to help enforcement.
"Bus companies are being made aware of the ban and any suggestions for alternative locations in Melksham for bus drivers to have their break are being welcomed.
"Local operators are being contacted to encourage their drivers to park at their depots."
Additionally, please see below the story that appeared in the Wiltshire Times on Friday 18th June 2010 (not reproduced here on our web site for copyright reasons [Link])
The above is an "information service" that I'm providing and is not intended to express my personal views, nor those of the Chamber of Commerce or Well House Consultants.
The illustrations accompanying the article shows the current (June 2010) signage in the car park in question and elsewhere in Melksham. I will come back and add in pictures of the new signage once it's installed.
The following Acronyms were used by Wiltshire Council in their message:
HGV - Heavy Goods Vehicle
TRO - Traffic Regulation Order
VOSA - Vehicle and Operator Service Agencies
You will be aware that residents have been campaigning to get the lorries removed from this car park as it is surrounded by residential properties. An environmental health officer visited the site at the start of the year and found that noise levels would amount to a statutory nuisance and that legal action could well be upheld against Wiltshire Council. To this end Wiltshire Council commissioned our term contractors to investigate alternative sites for overnight parking for lorries in the immediate area.
A high proportion of lorries regularly using this overnight stop have been established as being local companies. It is expected that the drivers of these lorries live locally within Melksham and are using the parking facility as a more convenient place to park and start their working day rather than returning to their local depot. This of course contravenes the agreements placed by VOSA on the use of the companies registered 'depot' and further aggravates the local residents.