'Where are the traffic wardens?' Stamford residents sick of 'muppets' parking in their spaces

There aren’t many people who relish the sight of a traffic warden - but residents in one area of Stamford can’t wait to see one.

Throughout the lockdown ‘civil enforcement officers’ had been stood down due to the drop in traffic levels and closed shops.

But with no threat of tickets stuck to windscreens, this meant people have been leaving their cars for days or even weeks in bays that should have a two-hour limit.

This has been especially evident in the area of St Mary’s Street and St George’s Square where homeowners with parking permits have often found themselves with nowhere to park.

“Some people have been sticking their cars there for two to three weeks,” said one resident and business owner, who did not wish to be named.

“This means residents who have permits are often unable to park because some muppets from somewhere else have nicked our parking spaces. We are getting sick of it.”

He said that on Wednesday last week (June 17) six of the 12 cars parked on St Mary’s Street had no permits.

And with shops now opening up, and pubs and restaurants potentially following suit within the next few weeks, the problem will only get worse.

The man said he had called Lincolnshire County Council but could get no firm answer as to when the traffic wardens would be back on the streets.

“The big question is, when are parking attendants going to return to Stamford?,” he said.

“People are just taking advantage of the situation but it’s easily resolved by bringing the wardens back.”

A county council spokesman said parking enforcement was being “scaled back up”, but could not say exactly when officers would return to Stamford.

In a statement, Coun Richard Davies (Con), executive member for highways, said: "When lockdown measures were first introduced and traffic across Lincolnshire fell by as much as 70 per cent, parking enforcement was scaled back to allow us to focus on essential services and reduce unnecessary journeys.

"Now, as lockdown measures have eased and more traffic is returning to our roads, parking enforcement will return to normal levels."

* Have you had issues due to the lack of traffic wardens? Contact steve.creswell@iliffepublishing.co.uk or call 07808 632807.