‘Dangerous’ school parking is ‘accident waiting to happen’

BOWERHILL residents have said that parking on a road near Melksham Oak School, during drop-off and pick-up times, has become a hazard and is an accident waiting to happen.

According to residents, parking along Falcon Way is ‘getting ridiculous’ with cars lining the street from the mini-roundabout where it meets Bath Road, all the way back to Grasmere. 

“Falcon Way is chock-a-block with cars,” said one resident, who has suggested that Falcon Way have double-yellow lines to solve the problem. “I’m having to drive on the wrong side of the road to get around them, and cars coming the other way off the roundabout coming into Bowerhill are having to stop. 

“It’s dangerous; someone is going to get seriously hurt one day. And I’ve spoken to the school, local council and police – but no one seems to want to do anything about the congestion that the parking there is causing – emergency service vehicles would struggle to get past. The cars are restricting access to the roundabout – but the police say they can’t do anything about it as there are no parking restrictions on the road. 

“The school has its own parking area for parents – but they don’t seem to want to use it.”

In response to the concerns, Wiltshire Council has said that the issue had not ‘previously been brought to their attention’, but it will instruct its Parking Services team to visit the area to investigate. 

The local policing team – who say they do patrol the area most days, focusing on the beginning and end of the school day – have said that as there aren’t any double yellow lines or parking suspensions on Falcon Way, they can only issue fixed penalty notices for ‘obstruction of the highway’, which includes blocking driveways and junctions.

According to a local sergeant, there has been no recent reason to issue any fixed penalty notices. 

Melksham Without Parish Council has appealed to parents and carers to ‘park considerately’ and added that they hope the new rear entrance to the school – which they are pushing Wiltshire Council to build – will help alleviate the parking congestion. 

A spokesperson for Melksham Without Parish Council told Melksham News, “The parish council have sympathy with the residents that are experiencing the congestion caused by parking at the entrance to Falcon Way.  

“Unfortunately, this is a perennial problem experienced by all the schools in the parish, and we suspect across Wiltshire and the country.  

“The problem with putting double yellow lines in these areas is that it just moves the problem a bit further down the road, or to an adjoining road, where the yellow lines are not in place. It also makes it very difficult for residents if parking is prevented outside of their house, if they have frequent visitors such as carers or the district nurse, delivery vehicles for online shopping or work shifts and are home during the day for example.

“The parish council is very hopeful that the new footpath being put into the rear of the school from the east of Melksham developments will mean that there are a lot less cars on the road driving their children to school as a much shorter, direct pedestrian route will be in place.  

“The parish council share the frustration of residents as the rear pedestrian access is something that they asked for all along, before the school was built, as they were concerned about only one access point on an A road. In the meantime, we appeal to parents and carers to park considerately when providing lifts to pupils.” 

Wiltshire Council’s cabinet member for transport, cllr Dr Mark McClelland added, “The concerns that have been raised have not previously been brought to our attention. The Parking Services team will now visit the area to see if there is anything that they can do to assist.”

The White Horse Federation, which manages Melksham Oak School, was approached for comment.