Double yellow lines appear on Ludlow street – four days before consultation on them ends
Double yellow lines have appeared on a residential street in Ludlow – four days before a consultation on whether they were needed was due to end.
The lines appeared at junctions on Gravel Hill on Monday, to the bemusement of residents and councillors who say they were not told about them before they appeared.
A consultation by Shropshire Council on whether yellow lines should be put down to improve visibility and road safety at the Hillside and Gravel Hill junctions ended yesterday.
But eager road workers did not wait to hear the findings of the consultation – or indeed for it to end – before cracking open the yellow paint.
Councillors Andy Boddington, who represents Ludlow North, and Tracey Huffer, Ludlow East, whose wards meet at Gravel Hill, said they had complained to the council over the matter.
"We have massive reservations about the lines because we think they could displace traffic into other areas which are already quite congested," he said.
"We have problems with parking in Ludlow full stop – it is the nature of the historic town that has grown up and seen an increase in car use – but it just means we have to have a bit of tolerance.
Problematic
"The council seems to have pre-empted the outcome of the consultation. I think that is bad process. What is the point in having a consultation if you have already made up your mind?"
Councillor Boddington said that while parking on Gravel Hill was at times problematic, there were other areas of the town that were much more of a priority.
He added that motorists could not earn a ticket for parking on the new lines in Gravel Hill as there was no traffic order in place to make them effective.
It is not known whether the lines will be left in place if the outcome of the consultation is that they are not needed.
Shropshire Council was approached for comment.
