The lorry parking facilities at King Street car park, Melksham have been deemed unsuitable and the Council is likely to close this car park to heavy goods vehicles. In light of this, the Council is considering providing alternative parking provision at Leekes car park on Beanacre Rd. The information below gives a brief background to the situation and explains about the survey that was undertaken to assess the options for relocation.
Feasibility
Study - King Street Lorry Park, Melksham 3mb - Map showing the sites that have been considered
The online survey has now closed , but there is also a public event, open to all, to be held on 15 June 2010 in Melksham Town Hall from 6.30 where options will be discussed and the public will have the chance to vote on them.
Background
King Street car park is owned by Wiltshire Council. The car park provides 24 hours, free parking for up to 8 goods vehicles within a designated section of the car park, in addition to pay and display parking for other vehicles.
The car park is bounded by residential properties and concerns have been raised by residents regarding the increase in use of the car park for overnight parking of goods vehicles. Resident’s concerns relate to the loss of privacy, noise disturbance and environmental issues created by the presence of these vehicles. The site has been visited by an officer from Wiltshire Council’s environmental protection team who indicated that the noise caused by the idling of lorry engines, particularly during the early morning hours, is likely to be considered a statutory nuisance.
In
response to these findings, Wiltshire Council commissioned a study 3mb to investigate
the options for relocating
the goods vehicle parking provision away from King Street car park. The study 3mb also
looked at the impact
of closing down the lorry parking facility without providing an alternative. The sites that were considered
can be found highlighted on the map.
Assessment Criteria
The requirements for a basic lorry parking facility as put forward by the Department for Transport have been used as a basis for the assessment of potential sites highlighted as part of this study. The criteria for assessment were as follows:
- Size of site – the site must be large enough to accommodate the required number of vehicles as well as having enough space for vehicles to pass one another and make turning manoeuvres.
- Site Access/Egress – the access into and egress from the site onto the public highway must be able to accommodate the necessary vehicle manoeuvres and have appropriate sight lines for both exiting and oncoming traffic.
- Route to Site –the site must be within close proximity of primary route network or freight advisory route.
- Surface suitability – the surface material of the sites should be of suitable construction to accommodate HGV traffic.
- Facilities – the site should have facilities’ for drivers to include toilets, wash facilities and litter bins as a minimum
- Distance to amenities – the site should be in walking distance of amenities such as food outlets
- Surrounding land use – at least 50m from residential property.
- Security – the site should have security measures in place to prevent theft from lorries. and attacks on drivers. This could include CCTV, security patrols or a high level of natural surveillance.
- Works required – the assessment will highlight any works that may be required to bring the site up to the necessary standard (e.g. provision of wash facilities, re-surfacing) and will provide a basic estimate of costs for the provision of these works.
Outcome of Assessment
The criteria were applied to all sites that had potential for lorry parking. The study highlighted Leekes car park in Melksham as being the only feasible option for relocation of the lorry parking facilities. The impact of not providing alternative provision was that lorries are likely to be displaced to local roads and industrial estates. This was not considered an acceptable solution as it would simply displace the problems experienced by the residents near King Street to other parts of the town.
Decisions
At the Melksham Area Board on 24th March, Councillors voted to accept the recommendations of the report: to close the lorry parking facility at King Street and explore the options of using Leekes car park for this purpose. The vote was taken subject to further consultation taking place with local residents.
Consultation – online survey and public event
The online survey has now closed , but there is also a public event, open to all, to be held on 15 June 2010 in Melksham Town Hall from 6.30 where options will be discussed and the public will have the chance to vote on them.
- Feasibility
Study - King Street Lorry Park, Melksham 3mb
- Map showing the sites that have been considered
Last updated: 7 February 2011
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