A decision on whether to make changes to a street besieged by congestion has been deferred.
Plans to remove waiting restrictions outside properties in Conduit Road in Stamford were due to be discussed by Lincolnshire County Council’s planning and regulation committee today (Monday, January 13).
Conduit Road in Stamford
However, the decision was postponed to allow for additional work to be carried out.
Committee chairman Ian Fleetwood (Conservative) said: “I do need to vary the agenda slightly in that item four, Conduit Road, needs to be deferred because I believe there is some extra to be done on this.”
Concerns about congestion caused by continuous on-street parking bays from the bottom of the street to the entrance of Stamford School swimming pool and sports centre were raised with the council.
Currently, the bays allow parking for up to two hours between 8am and 6pm, while residents with council permits can park there all day.
A report to the committee read: “The concerns of residents have been raised by the local member regarding congestion on Conduit Road resulting from periodic high traffic flows and obstruction caused by on-street parking in the area near to the access to the sports centre.
“During site visits, it has been observed that within the 160m long continuous parking bay there is no area to pull in to allow oncoming traffic to pass, and that where the bays on both sides of the road overlap near to the access into the sports centre, a pinch point is created.”
Alternative suggestions included making parking bays exclusive to permit holders and introducing a one-way order along Conduit Road.
A total of 19 objections were received in response to the proposal, with some residents expressing concerns that, despite paying for permits to park in their street, the loss of on-street parking spaces will increase competition for parking between residents and visitors to the school and sports centre.
Conduit Road resident Sunny Appen said: “Taking away spaces outside the guide hut would cause a huge heap of trouble and is simply introducing a new place for chaos.
“Similarly, introducing a one-way system is nonsense, and I can’t see people in Recreation Ground Road thanking us for it, while suggesting Conduit Road has its own parking mechanism for residents is the high end of selfish. People who want their own parking should buy a house with a drive.
“For me the solution lies in changing driving habits and reducing speed. Two normal-size cars can pass one another in Conduit Road, but not at speed.
“I think the whole of Stamford will be 20mph in future. If we can make it so cars and pedestrians interact more safely, vehicles can have a place in Stamford in the long term.
“We need a whole-systems approach to address the needs of the town, rather than the desires of people on one road.”