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Under the order, people who repeatedly park their vehicles in a way that blocks recycling and waste vehicles could be fined.
The three Portishead roads where this trial is taking place are Teal Way, Shannon Walk and Curlew Place. These three roads all experience issues with parked vehicles obstructing the road when recycling and waste collections are taking place.
Parked cars disrupted collection crews in this area 47 times last year. This meant crews had to return again, sometimes multiple times, to collect recycling and waste, inconveniencing residents and costing taxpayers money.
Given the frequency of disruption, the council is trialling a PSPO on these three roads, which means people can be fined for obstructive parking. The council can introduce this type of anti-social behaviour legislation when certain unreasonable activities or behaviours are repeatedly taking place in a public space and will negatively impact the quality of life of people in the area.
The PSPO will be enforced on collection days from 9am to 11am. During that time, parked vehicles that block access for collection crews on Teal Way, Shannon Walk and Curlew Place will be reported for breach of PSPO. The council will warn people whose parking has blocked collection vehicles, and if they are reported three times then they will face a fine enforced by the council.
Councillor Annemieke Waite, North Somerset Council’s Executive Member for Climate, Waste and Sustainability, said: “Obstructive parking can have a significant impact, preventing waste collection crews from carrying out their collections as planned. This causes inconvenience to residents, as crews can’t collect their recycling and waste on the correct day.
“Crews then need to return – sometimes multiple times – to complete their work. These extra journeys also negatively impact the environment, requiring more fuel and contributing to emissions.
“Poor parking can also put lives at risk when emergency vehicles are unable to pass.
"We encourage everybody to park responsibly, and thank those residents who already do. We hope that trialling a Public Space Protection Order in these three streets will make the kerbside recycling and waste collection service more reliable for everyone, as our crews will be able to collect recycling and waste on time.”
Councillor Caritas Charles, North Somerset Council ward member for Portishead East, said: “I am happy that we are working with local residents to find a solution to this problem. We need to ensure that our collection crews can safely and easily gain access to these streets to collect recycling and waste, something that many residents have written to me with concerns about. We hope this trial will be a success and balance the need for access with people’s parking requirements.”
To find out more about Public Space Protection Orders in North Somerset, visit the council’s website at www.n-somerset.gov.uk/pspo.
Image credit: Mark Atherton.