Restrictions planned to save village’s bus route
A PARISH council is to start the process of introducing parking restrictions on a busy road which runs past a village school.
It comes as First Bus prepares to divert services during busy school times through Kingsley from April 8.
At last week’s meeting of Kingsley Parish Council it was stated that no solutions had been found, despite meeting with several groups, to stop cars parking in the morning and afternoon outside the school which is located on a busy and a road with severe bends.
Last November, Daniel Flanagan, a representative of First Bus, attended a Kingsley Parish Council meeting to outline problems that were being experienced by their drivers in Holt Lane, Kingsley.
It was caused by parking congestion at school drop off and pick up times, and the situation had got worse in the previous eight months.
Mr Flanagan stated that cars were parking along sections of Holt Lane, including a blind bend, which results in buses and cars having to drive on the wrong side of the road with no clear view of the road ahead.
The First Bus representative said that unless the situation could be rectified, they will be left with no alternative but to amend their route to miss out the villages of Kingsley and Kingsley Holt at the material times.
At last week’s meeting of Kingsley Parish Council, Councillor John Steele, said: “It has been revealed that a lot of pupils come to the school from outside the community.
“It is a popular school and to sustain it more children are needed. However, unless there is a change of heart by parents that they just drop their children off, then the only option is parking restrictions.
“We need to displace the problem or we will lose the buses. I propose that we start the process and see what the public have to say. This can be done by starting the process of making parking restrictions.”
The clerk informed members that she had spoken to the county councillor for the area, Mike Worthington, who had said that the only option was to place single yellow lines around the problem areas.
Councillor and chairman of the parish council, Ken Unwin, said: “Parking restrictions would have to be thought through. There are severe tight corners along the road. It could also push cars further away on what are just as bad roads. Parking is a problem outside many schools across the country. If yellow lines are placed will we get enforcement officers to enforce it? Between 40 and 50 per cent of pupils come from outside the area.”
Councillor Martyn Hordern said that there was a risk of losing the buses.
He said: “Cars and buses can’t get past one another. Something has to be done. However, we could have an enforcement issue but who enforces it?”
Councillor Elsie Fallows said: “There is scope for a drop off. Why was this dismissed? The bus shelter could be taken away to create more room.
“This is causing chaos. Lorries and cars can’t get through as cars are parked on both sides.”
Councillor David Fowler asked if Staffordshire Moorlands District Council officers would enforce parking restrictions.
He said: “Parking restrictions may move cars somewhere else. There should be a drop off solution worth looking at, but this has been shot down.”
After a debate councillors voted to agree to write to their county councillor, Mike Worthington, to start the process of introducing parking restrictions in the area.