A pensioner was left trapped in her home by cars parked just inches away from her front gate. A parking bay, coupled with a lack of pavement outside Carol Tabere's home in Withington, Manchester, regularly left her unable to leave her property.
The 75-year-old was left frustrated every time a vehicle parked in the space, meaning she couldn't leave her Hill Street home to walk her dog or pop to the shops, the Manchester Evening News reported. Carol has lived in her home for 31 years and her son feared that if there was an emergency, paramedics wouldn't be able to get to her if a vehicle was parked there.
The pensioner would regularly leave notes on drivers' windscreens asking them politely not to park there - but she has been abused by some drivers, with one even calling her an "old b****". Carol said the situation has been a "nightmare" for her.
The parking space, part of a resident parking zone, was introduced in 2015 - but after Carol complained to Manchester City Council, the troublesome space has finally been removed within the past few weeks and replaced with double yellow lines. But while the space that blocked her path has now been taken away, there are still spaces next to her property that are causing her problems.
Carol said the council could have put the spaces on the opposite side of the road, where there are pavements and no homes - but instead drivers "wallop their doors" into the hedge surrounding her property. She says they are too close to her home and force drivers to scrape their cars into her privets.
Carol, who suffers from angina and narcolepsy and can no longer drive, has expressed her annoyance at the scheme. She said: "I wasn't being pedantic and complaining for the sake of it, but I don't have a pavement outside my house, so when cars were parked there there was no way I could get out. I was trapped.
"I told them (the council) to send someone out to take a look. People were coming and parking up and everytime I opened my door, I would say 'oh no, not again'. I was constantly going out and putting notes on people's cars asking them not to park there. I know it was a lined bay, but common sense would tell you it's right outside someone's gate.
"My son had said that if paramedics needed to get in the house, they wouldn't be able to, or if the house was to set on fire, I would've been trapped."
The Resident Parking Zone (RPZ) was first implemented in 2015 to address the impact of parking on the surrounding residential areas. However, this caused displaced parking issues in the wider Withington neighbourhood, coupled with the expansion staff and visitor numbers at the hospital, prompting the expansion.
"People didn't think they were doing anything wrong because it was a parking bay. I have had to tell people they are blocking my path, and one man even swore at me when I asked him to move and called me an 'old b***'," she added.
"There were days I would try to go out with my dog, and would have to shuffle past the cars and drag him along past the hedge.
"The council could've put the spaces on the other side of the road, where there is a pavement and no houses. But instead, people come and wallop their doors into my hedge.
"It's been a nightmare, but when they removed the space I was delighted, because I could finally get out of my house."
A spokesperson for Manchester City Council said: “Earlier this year the Council informed residents in the vicinity of the new Resident Parking Zone that its rollout was being paused following feedback from the community.
“In the case of this resident, remedial works were carried out to implement double yellow lines in front of their property to prevent future parking.”
