New parking has made area ‘a much nicer place to come home to’.
A salon-owner and resident has thanked Telford & Wrekin Council for the difference new parking spaces made to her estate.
Vickie Randall of ‘Vick’s Hair & Beauty Lounge’ in Dawley Bank, experienced first-hand how a few more parking spaces, improved conditions on her estate.
Mrs Randall said: “It used to be a nightmare if you came home late like I did sometimes from working at the salon, I couldn’t park anywhere or would have to risk blocking someone in - plus there was no emergency access.
“It caused a lot of friction between neighbours as we all needed to park nearby – there was just no room anywhere else, and the walk was too far, especially from some of the older people or those with children or heavy bags and shopping to carry. It wasn't a huge scheme but the new spaces made it a much nicer place to come home to.”
The majority of new spaces have been put in place, from ward members at the request of residents with the aim of easing parking limitations but maintaining green spaces as much as possible.
Telford & Wrekin Council has invested almost £2m for extra parking bringing improvements to housing estates across the borough.
Around 500 new or refurbished spaces will have been delivered by April. Some of the areas already delivered to date include Princess End, Malinslee. First Avenue, Ketley Bank. Sutton Way, Sutton Hill, Rutland Green, Leegomery with additional sites being assessed by engineers.
Councillor Lee Carter, cabinet member for neighbourhood services, regeneration and the high street said: “We will never be able to solve the problem on every estate and the work going on that may be in your street is the tip of the iceberg, it may look like a small project but we are making improvements where we can across Telford & Wrekin.
“It’s a real juggling act to make sure we balance the need to make things better for residents while preserving green spaces.
The ‘Pride in Our Community’ programme will deliver improvements to infrastructure including roads, footpaths, parking, sustainable transport, street furniture, drains and structures.
*Editor’s note: The actual figure that has been invested is *£1.93m since 2018/19 and extends until March 2023.
