Wednesday May 20th 2015
Colin Beattie MSP, Midlothian North & Musselburgh, has written to Midlothian Council expressing his concern at the parking situation in Dalkeith and asking for a review of current parking arrangements across the whole town.
“The current situation cannot continue. Vehicles are often double parked up and down the High Street and down nearby side streets. Double yellow lines and bus stops are ignored. Disabled drivers often cannot park as close to facilities as they should be able to,” said Mr Beattie.
“While I spend most of my time in the parliament I do also meet constituents in my office in the High Street. The knock on effect of the parking chaos is that, like so many others, I am forced to compromise on my own parking just to be able to access my office,” he continued.
“Clearly the present arrangements are not working and the time has come for a comprehensive review of how to manage parking in Dalkeith. We don’t want to chase away shoppers who frequent local businesses but we do want to discourage those commuters who simply treat Dalkeith as a Park and Ride. Supermarkets and public car parks together with judicious and well managed street parking are capable of accommodating everyone’s needs. Let’s be clear. I am not advocating heavy handed policing where drivers simply get tickets slapped on their windscreens. I am asking for some imaginative and effective, but sensitive, management of our streets and car parks and I am asking for it urgently,” Mr Beattie concluded.
Additionally Midlothian View is aware that as a small number of King’s Park school parents continue to disregard requests to park considerately and safely away from the school, the council has had to take the action of closing the Parkside Place entrance to the school, thereby inconveniencing the majority of parents for the sake of the few inconsiderate ones.
The fact that Midlothian only has one traffic warden for the whole county appears to mean that double yellow lines and parking restrictions mean much less in Midlothian than elsewhere in Scotland.
