Neighbours on a residential Beeston road say parking nightmares have returned along with the start of a new year of university. University of Nottingham students have flocked back over the past month as a new term begins, but people living in Peveril Road say it means the return of longstanding parking woes.
They say students account for a large number of cars being parked down their street, which makes it hard for some residents to secure spaces and others to get off their drives. "There's just nowhere to park, students park all the way down the road," said John Williams, a 53-year-old NHS worker.
"Once students come back it's a nightmare. Just getting in and out of a drive is hard, it's not very safe. The council was meant to be doing something."
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Wendy Coe, who has lived on the road for 20 years, said it was not unusual for cars to be left for three days at a time. "It's not all students, since they pulled down the multi-storey car park near Arc cinema other people have been parking here," she said.
"It's not just students but it gets worse when they're here, we can live with it during the summer." When Nottinghamshire Live visited the road, the close proximity meant many cars had difficulty squeezing through.
Many cars slowed down to less than a mile an hour to pass, with larger vehicles such as lorries forced to reverse back down the road. Ms Coe said a public consultation was being carried out by Nottinghamshire County Council, but claims it was "rubbish" and not addressing the issue.
She wants residents to be given parking permits. Gary Wood, head of highways at the county council, said a previous consultation with residents about a potential parking scheme was dropped because not enough residents had engaged.
Nottinghamshire County Council could not provide information on the current consultation at the time of request. “We urge all motorists to think before they park and consider how their parking will affect other road users," continued Mr Wood.
"It is really important to think about whether emergency services vehicles can get down your street, should they need to. When parking, it is important to do so in a way that does not inconvenience and endanger others. Parking good practice tips can be found on our website: www.nottinghamshire.gov.uk/transport/parking/parking-enforcement.”
A spokesperson for the University of Nottingham said it was not aware of recent complaints, but recognised residents' frustration. "We encourage local residents to speak to our Community Engagement team about any concerns they have in relation to our students in the first instance," they said.
"While we have limited jurisdiction on a public highway, if there is evidence of inconsiderate parking by a university student that is causing obstruction or annoyance and the person responsible can be identified, then we will seek to take action, including contacting the student to request that the vehicle be moved."
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