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Wait for parking lines 'ridiculous', say residents

Henry Godfrey-EvansEssex
Henry Godfrey-Evans/BBC A woman with a blue woollen hat, a pink scarf and a blue coat with a long road stretching off into the distanceHenry Godfrey-Evans/BBC
Miriam Turton moved out of London for the "quiet" village of Takeley, which she says is now overpopulated

Residents of a village blighted by airport users say the long wait for parking restrictions to deter them is getting "ridiculous".

London Stansted Airport customers have spent years clogging up Parsonage Road in Takeley to avoid expensive parking fees, an "alarming" situation Essex County Council (ECC) promised to fix.

Takeley Parish Council says it has been waiting more than two years for a solution, and is calling for the addition of red lines to prevent cars from stopping or unloading at any time.

ECC, now led by Reform UK, says it is a "complex and sensitive issue" to resolve, adding that it would need to engage with locals and stakeholders before making official proposals.

Stansted Airport is set to increase its capacity to become the UK's second largest airport, but it has previously offered to pay for the £22,000 it would cost to install the lines.

The parish council said red lines had been promised by the county council last November, "to be installed by the end of January".

"This was the county council's preferred solution and funding has been agreed by Stansted Airport," it added.

Henry Godfrey-Evans/BBC A sign that says "Jubilee Court" and then "No Airport Parking. Residents Parking Only Monitoring in progressHenry Godfrey-Evans/BBC
In February, warning signs were spotted on roadsides in Elsenham, Great Dunmow, Stansted Mountfitchet and Takeley

Miriam Turton has lived on Parsonage Road for more than a decade and insisted everyone would support parking restrictions.

"There isn't any objections to this, this is something the residents completely want as soon as possible, which should have been done six months ago," she said.

"That's just the time delay factor again, to knock it on again.

"We would go and paint the lines down ourselves if it wasn't against the law.

"Having the red lines there will ease the situation and make it a safer place... having no red lines there, is [a] catastrophe."

Retiree Graham Statter, 68, said he felt "ignored" by the council.

"They are dragging their feet and I don't understand why," he said.

"One hour restricted parking a day would stop airport car parking completely."

Both residents told the BBC that someone had left unauthorised cones along the stretch, temporarily fixing the problem for them.

Takeley Parish Council Four cars parked on a road with a tow-away truck loaded with cars ahead of them. A man in high-vis jacket is making notes. Three other men in high-vis jackets can be seen nearby with another tow truck. Takeley Parish Council
Takeley Parish Council say a combination of airport users parking in the street and HGVs using the road was causing traffic problems
Graham Statter Line of red cones along a village street, with sporadic parked cars and a wheelie bin in viewGraham Statter
Unauthorised cones have also been left along roads in the village, which temporarily solved the problem

Mark Webster, cabinet member for highways and infrastructure at ECC, said it was a problem "inherited" from the previous administration, and they wanted to be sure a solution was "workable, proportionate and long-lasting".

It would mean ensuring residents understood the implications of measures such as double red lines, including access for deliveries.

He said: "We completely understand the desire to get this done quickly, but we have a responsibility to consider different views and address any objections properly."

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