A NORTH Belfast Sinn Féin MLA has called for action to tackle illegal parking in streets in the New Lodge area.
Carál Ní Chuilín this week held a community meeting which included representatives from local residents, Belfast City Council, the Safer Streets Committee, Ulster University, Ashton Centre and Department for Infrastructure on the issue.
Residents living in Thomas Street, Lancaster Street, Lancaster Terrace, Portland Place and McGurk’s Way are requesting that the Department bring forward short, medium and long-terms solutions to unwanted parking in the area.
Ms Ní Chuilín has now written to the Department for Infrastructure calling for intervention to address illegal parking in residents’ streets in the area.
“Residents of the lower New Lodge area are being regularly obstructed by people using this community as a car park and it simply isn’t good enough and I’m calling on the Department for Infrastructure to intervene,” she explained.
“This week, we came together with residents, Council, Ulster University and the Safer Streets Group to discuss the huge levels of disruption being caused by often illegal parking.
“We heard how cars and vans are being parked blocking pavements, over driveways and blocking access for residents of these streets.
“Traffic management and enforcement is largely ineffective and people feel like they are living in a car park and are the last consideration.
”There is a responsibility on construction firms working locally to find alternative parking arrangements urgently and as we face into a return to university life there is a need for the Ulster University to act now before the volume of parking here increases.
“I’ve requested DFI introduce parking management measures and residents are more than willing to engage with authorities to find reasonable solutions.
“This is a strong local community making sensible and practical proposals to find a resolution and we need to see short term action and a long-term solution to this problem.
“With the prospect of the development of the York Street Interchange ahead residents are rightfully concerned that this community will be further disrupted so their voices need to be heard by all agencies involved.”
