Neighbours fined for parking outside their own homes after traffic enforcement changes in South Shields street

Residents in Prince Edward Road, South Shields, have been hit with fines for parking outside their own homes - despite some of them doing it for nearly 20 years.

They had been fined for parking on blocked paving outside their homes because the council has decided to step up enforcement in the area, after repainting single yellow lines.

The council say this was at the request of other residents in the area but means people in four houses are being forced to find somewhere else to park away from their homes - or risk being hit with repeated fines.

Residents Amanda Carrick and Danielle and Michael Leavold have been left angered by the penalty notices dropping through their doors.

Mrs Carrick, who has lived in her home for 18 years, said: “In all that time I have never had a problem parking outside my home.

“I have a drive for one of the cars but now they are expecting me to park my car out of sight in another street.

“There are another three houses with cars who now also have nowhere to park them, without being fined.”

She added: “The council say there is no space to put parking bays. If they got rid of the block paving they could use that space as parking bays.

“People further up the street have been given parking bays when the lines were painted there.”

The parking restrictions are in place between the hours of 8am and 6pm in a bid to prevent shoppers at the Nook from parking in that particular area.

Mrs Carrick said: “The council have told us to take our walls down to make our drives bigger but are they going to pay for someone to do that?

“We have asked if we could have permits but they have said it would cost too much to give three houses parking permits.

“I work late, so that means I would have to get up in a morning just to move my car into another street which is only going to make parking in those streets even worse.

“None of it makes sense.”

A council spokeswoman said: “Parking restrictions have always been in place in this area. However, the council has repainted the single yellow line and stepped up enforcement in this area at the request of local residents concerned about vehicle overspill from The Nook shopping precinct.

“Only once the markings were made clearer could effective parking enforcement take place.

“The footway along this section is also protected by numerous bollards to prevent parking on the pavement, which is not strong enough for vehicle use. Unfortunately, due to limited space, it is unsuitable for designated parking bays. We would encourage residents to use their driveways wherever possible or park in non-restricted areas.

“Drivers who receive a Penalty Charge Notice have the right to appeal.”