Photo: Foul lane, Southport
VIDEO | Outrage as gypsies take over Southport Park & Ride
TRAVELLERS have set up home in the car park at Kew Park & ride leaving Southport commuters with no alternative parking options, Wednesday 12 April 2017.
Around 20 caravans, together with cars and vans, have parked at the at the Foul Lane site.
Garth Burgess who regularly uses the car park said: “They’ve also broken the gates down into turf land and are racing quads and dumping rubbish everywhere. No sign of any police. They’d be about if they were up near to Royal Birkdale golf course.”
Councillor Tony Dawson, who has had to deal with the most travellers issues in Southport as these tend to be in the centre of town and coastal area, says:
“The Kew Park and Ride site is highly-exposed and apparently not monitored so it seems relatively easy for travellers to access when they want to. It was always a ‘white elephant: heaven knows how much public money and has now been designated for housing by the Council, possibly to be built many years from now. In the meantime, it will continue to attract travellers.”
“The problem is that many travellers want to come to Southport. They have no interest whatsoever in being elsewhere in the ‘Borough of Sefton’ yet the Council’s official traveller sites are elsewhere. Unless the Council designate a proper site locally, this problem will continue indefinitely just on different pieces of land but particularly this one.”
Although faster and more effective enforcement powers have come into force regarding unauthorised Gypsy / traveller’s sites, it still hasn’t stopped a number of travellers setting up camp on Kew Park & Ride Southport.
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