Inconsiderate parking provokes campaign in Selkirk

At a recent meeting of the Selkirk Community Council, it has emerged that there are three current areas of concern where inconsiderate parking is either unsafe, blocking emergency vehicles or hindering postal and other deliveries.

The community councillors have joined forces with Selkirkshire Scottish Borders councillors to create a poster initiative, designed to ask drivers to park with more consideration.

Councillor Caroline Cochrane said: “These problems have been building up for some time now, and it seemed, with the lack of resources devoted to enforcement, that the only thing to do was to take some proactive action ourselves. We have produced different posters for each situation, in an attempt to appeal to the common sense of most drivers.

"For the sake of a couple of minutes extra, they could be exercising more consideration for others, as well as assisting the very difficult tasks that emergency services and crossing guards have to do daily.”

There is an ongoing problem with parents delivering or collecting children from the primary school in Anderson Rd. Vehicles parking along Bleachfield Road, on corners and on double yellow lines, even for short periods of time, succeed in blocking the street, hindering traffic sightlines to crossing guards and causing aggravation to other road users.

The school has written to parents but this has apparently not eased the problem.

Outside Selkirk’s Post Office, off the Market Place, the clearly marked ‘Loading Only’ space is regularly blocked by residents and visitors, forcing delivery vehicles to delay their rounds, park elsewhere, or block the street.

Finally, on the High Street, the practice of some people of parking on the single yellow line on the North side, where parking is restricted between 8:30 and 5:30 pm, Monday to Saturday, means that emergency vehicles cannot get through if there is any traffic at all at the other end of the street.

Grant Kinghorn, a member of Selkirk Community Council and local photographer, said: “I happened to be there when our local fire engine was trying to get along the High Street from East to West a while back, and I snapped this shot (pictured). What you can’t see is the blockage of the street at the Western end, caused by illegal parking on one side.”

Andy Murray, Chair of Selkirk Community Council said: “Selkirk folk are normally very considerate and will be happy to move their car if necessary.

"In this case we are merely trying to politely point out that, in all these areas, its not just a couple of minutes – it could be in some cases a matter of life and death. We’re asking people to think a little bit more about others, and, if necessary, add a couple of minutes to their journeys to avoid disruption and danger.”