DRIVERS are being urged not to block a road in Earley in case emergency services need to use it.
Last Thursday evening, Reading Buses was forced to alter its route after badly parked cars prevented it from using The Drive in Earley. The road links London Road to Culver Lane and forms part of the 13 and 14 Orange bus routes.
And it’s not the first time that parking has affected the routes. Some users on social media have shared experiences of buses having to reverse as they couldn’t get along The Drive. Others said that it wasn’t just buses that were affected: they couldn’t get their own car through the road.
Parts of The Drive have double yellow lines, and pavement parking is legal in other parts.
A spokesperson for Reading Buses told The Wokingham Paper: “The latest example of badly parked cars happened near The Drive in Woodley on Thursday, May 17, and caused our orange routes to divert as they could not pass.
“This is the latest in a number of incidents across all our network where people parking inconsiderately has affected our service.
“We always urge motorist to abide by any parking restrictions and to consider all vehicle movements when parking. It’s worth noting that it’s not just buses that are affected by this, with emergency services also struggling to get through narrow gaps that have been left.”
Wokingham Borough Council’s traffic wardens are only able to ticket drivers who park on the double yellow lines at the entrance to The Drive, it does not cover double parking – this is a police matter.
The Drive falls under the Bulmershe and Whitegates ward boundaries.
Cllr Andy Croy felt that the council should look at ways to enhance parking around the area.
He told The Wokingham Paper: “I’ve asked officers for a better understanding on what happened, but have not yet had a response.
“There is not enough parking here and the council need to look at creating some overflow parking on grass verges.”
Cllr Croy suggested that temporary matting could be put down on the grass to protect it and create the spaces.
He added: “There is no excuse for bad parking. I don’t think anyone parks with the intention of blocking, but people do need to be a bit more careful.”
