WHILE the Wokingham Fireworks event had been very successful, there have been concerns about parking around the site.
We understand that Thames Valley Police told organisers that some parking in the roads around the site was dangerous and could have prevented emergency vehicle access, had they been needed.
Residents of Matthewsgreen Road have also aired their frustrations, taking to the community forum StreetLife to voice their concerns.
And these were echoed by the group behind the Cantley Field display, who said they had asked people to park in Wokingham Town Centre.
Writing on the StreetLife website, Tim L said: “[There was] the usual chaos in Matthewsgreen Road degenerated to total gridlock with badly parked cars on both sides reducing the road to single track with NO passing places.
“It is obvious that if Milton Road is closed then either Matthewsgreen Road has to be turned into one way or the police need to put no parking cones along both sides.”
Responding, Dave J agreed with the suggestion of cones. He added: “I don’t understand why people think it’s ok to be totally inconsiderate to others.”
RM, who lives on Matthewsgreen Road, added: “Whilst it is great to see so many people supporting this fantastic event, the chaos that comes with it could be better managed.”
Alan Rouse, one of the organisers, said: “The police were a little bit annoyed about the quality of parking from some people.
“We asked people to park in the town centre but some were parked in the roads around the field and apparently some of the parking was dangerous, blocking the access for emergency vehicles.
“The police were issuing parking tickets for causing an obstruction. That’s not something we can control, it’s up to the public to have some respect for everybody else.”
Thames Valley Police had yet to comment as we went to press.
