Sign sparks shopkeeper parking fears

PARKING peril . . . Val Pemberton with the covered up parking sign in Westway

CONFUSION surrounds a parking scheme in Shaw that has infuriated traders.

A sign limiting free parking to three hours with no return was erected in Westway car park — but it apparently refers to parking bays in the road that are yet to be laid out and not the car park spaces.

Shopkeepers initially feared limiting the car park would leave staff and shoppers with nowhere to park, driving customers away. They said it would give trade to Asda as people would use its free car park and shop there instead.

Former parish councillor Val Pemberton, who first spotted the sign, was told by council officials that the sign had been put in the wrong place and should be further down Westway, near Farrow Street.

Despite the sign being covered with a binliner, traders said damage had already been done as people who saw the sign believed they could not park in the car park for long.

Chris Madden, who owns Madden’s Discount Shop, said: “I have seen at least four people come and then drive off. It would have killed Shaw if that sign had stayed. There would have been an empty shop here.”

Oldham Council explained that the car park is not being changed but short-term parking bays were being put on the road.

Mrs Pemberton said she was still concerned that there had been no consultation and shoppers had already been put off.

She said: “No one has been notified by letter. No one knew it was happening. The damage has been done because a couple of the shopkeepers said people are saying if they can’t park here they won’t stop. People who saw the sign will shop elsewhere.”

A council spokesman said: “The new three-hour parking limit on Westway has been introduced because there is currently no short-term parking within Shaw district centre.

“The public car parks have a maximum stay of 18 hours and on-street parking availability during the day is unlimited.

“Because of this the available parking quickly becomes full making it hard to find short-term parking.

“As part of these measures contractors have been removing existing double yellow lines and replacing them with a series of parking bays.

“Before these measures were introduced all procedures were followed. Adverts were placed in the Oldham Chronicle between July 28 to August 25 asking whether or not residents had any objections to the plan, but no objections were received.”