A couple who live near a school say parents picking up and dropping off their kids have been causing mayhem on their road for decades. Pauline and Terry Thomas said mums and dads have been blocking their driveway for forty years, and it has had an impact on their mental well being.
Pauline has cancer and says once she was trapped outside her gates as she battled to get a taxi to her cancer appointment. She said the school run 'ruled her life'.
She has been forced to confront drivers who park up on the yellow zig zags lines outside her home to protect children. Over the years the couple has witnessed hundreds of parents park up ouside their home. Pauline believes the situation is dangerous for children and residents living on Boothroyden Road.
Speaking exclusively to the Manchester Evening News, she said: "I have a severe ulcer, it affects my voice. I have been out there since my 20s telling parents to move, then I got cancer. Sometimes I'd get a phone call, if someone didn't keep their appointment, I can go for it. One day there was a guy parked outside, I asked him too move as I couldn't get out the gates.
"The doctors is quite far so we usually order a taxi. You would think the taxi would pull up in front of the house, but he can't. There are about three or four cars parked in front of our house. We have to walk all the way to the end of our road because he can't park. I'm a cancer patient, I have appointments to do Chemotherapy. I shouldn't have to walk that far.
"In the past, I'd look at my watch, and when it's 2pm, I'd think, I have too get home. I used to have to rule my life and get back home before the mayhem started. One day, I just snapped, that's when I'd finally started to talk to the parents and tell them to move."
"We have yellow zig zag lines outside of our drive, they are there to protect the children. We contacted the council about this. They can run across the run from in between the cars and get hit. We told the council they will have blood on their hands if this keeps on.
"All the council have to do is put a camera or have a traffic warden, and it would make a difference. We are sick of calling them and they just tell us they don't have enough money."
Residents have reported the situation to Manchester City Council. The situation is still on going to the point that pedestrians cannot freely walk on the foot path because of the flux of cars parked.
John Cavanagh, 63, who lives on Boothroyden Road expressed his concerns with the parking done by parents, he said: "It's ridiculous, the parking is terrible. They are parking virtually right on the footpath. The cars are covering around three quarters of the footpath, people who have pram have to walk around on the road. It got to the point where my son couldn't get out of the gate because it was blocked off.
"We have had several incidents with one parent who has been told many times not to park outside and yet they still do it. There's a lamppost with a sign that is down on the floor and hasn't been put up. It makes it difficult to read.
"We have a neighbour who ordered an ambulance for himself, but it couldn't park up outside his home. The parents were blocking the footpath."
"The problem is, the junior school has intakes each year. Instead of the school telling the parents they can't park in certain areas, they are just ignoring it. Because it is a catholic school, the council can't step in. The school isn't keeping on top of it.
"We have already spoken to someone from the Town Hall who deals with parking, she came in last year and spoke to the school, on the day she came, we had traffic wardens here and the police ready to give tickets but that's not a thing anymore.
"I got into contact with the local councillor of the area. She got into contact with the council and they agreed to bring traffic wardens. They were supposed to come round twice a week since the 6th September, they've only come around twice in the last four months.
"There's a post outside near the road that says there are cameras, there aren't any! I rang up the council myself too but they said they don't have enough money.
A spokesperson for the Manchester City Council said: “The issue of on-street parking around schools is an issue the Council takes seriously and, in the past, has encouraged schools to put in place schemes which encourage walking and cycling to school.
“In roads where there are no parking restrictions the Council is limited in the action which can be taken. However, the Council will continue to work with our partners to prosecute drivers who park illegally and would encourage residents to contact us when they observe illegal parking.”
Our Lady's RC High School also gave a comment on the congestion: "We understand and share the frustrations of local residents, and regularly send communications to our parents asking them to be considerate when parking near school.
"We've also invested in an on-site bus terminal, which has significantly reduced the volume of traffic at the front of school, and we continuously promote alternative means of transportation to and from school with our pupils."
