People living in an Oldham neighbourhood are facing a 'nightmare' every day as cars park illegally despite hundreds of fines being given out. Waterloo Street in Oldham cuts through the centre of the suburb of Glodwick, but in recent months, it has been the centre of a debate as cars park repeatedly on double yellow lines, roads are blocked, and pavements are taken over.
One YouTube account, Pigs Ear Productions, has posted videos claiming up to 125 cars were parked illegally from 1pm to 8pm at night. Stuart Allsopp, who is behind the channel, said he raised the issue because there was a feeling no enforcement was taking place, adding: "It's dangerous for pedestrians.
"You drive down and then a person jumps out from behind a car. It's a 20mph zone. Lots of cars don't go down a 20. They just race down. At night, it's a race track."
Council fines and enforcement
Oldham Council said it has issued more than 250 fines so far this year, and a spokesperson said they were taking the issue seriously. In May, the Manchester Evening News understands an incident took place involving a council officer on the road, but the case was later closed, and the council said it is continuing to enforce parking rules.
However, Mr Allsopp does not believe this has been enough and wants to see issues improve. When the Manchester Evening News went to visit the road, multiple cars could be seen parking on the double yellow lines along the entire length. Despite being a quiet time of day, at least 16 illegally parked cars were spotted. Cars could also be seen parked on grass verges, damaging a nearby green space.
On the roads off Waterloo Street itself, cars line the pavements. With an alleyway due to be closed off for works in the area, there are also fears parking problems could be about to get worse.
Residents and business owners speak out
One business owner in the area said: "It's normal to us. I was born and bred here. Obviously there should be something done. This car park is our customer car park but residents just park here.
"We have written to the council so many times but nothing is going to get done. It's everywhere."
Sajid, who lives nearby, said: "It's a nightmare, an absolute nightmare". In the evenings, he said 'people start fighting' as cars are stuck and cannot get out of the way because 'they have 20 cars behind them'. He said the traffic issues were causing problems with getting his bin collected and believes there should be more enforcement. In his view, the council should remove the yellow lines if they are not going to crack down.
Old bus stop signs are still in place on the road, but no services have stopped at them since 2020. Sajid suggested this was because 'buses were getting stuck here for half an hour', though the Manchester Evening News understands the route was withdrawn due to the increased cost of running the under-used service at the time.
Bluntly, he added: "People here do not give s***. If you go down this main street about 4pm, people are parked on double yellows going into and from the shops and things like that."
Calls for more action
For people living in the area, the growth of the issue has been driven by multiple generations living in one house as well as a shift to greater car ownership, especially for young people. Criticism was also made of the lack of public transport links in the area as well as education to address the issue.
Rafit Hussain, a local business owner and chairman of local political party the Oldham Group, said the lack of public transport links was making the issue worse and called for more awareness and education around walking and cycling to reduce people's reliance on the car. In his view, the council have done little to enforce the issue, telling the Manchester Evening News: "The traffic wardens need to do their job. It's simple. They are not doing a good job with it.
"If someone is parking outside my business, come and book them. It's a big issue all over Oldham. If there's road works going on, it's chaos."
While 'nobody likes to get a ticket', he said the law had to be respected, adding: "Everyone learns when it hits your pocket otherwise people never learn. I haven't got an issue. I have zig zag lines outside my house and people park there."
An Oldham Council spokesperson said: "We understand the frustration and concern that inconsiderate parking can cause to residents and we take this issue seriously.
"Since 1 January we have issued 252 Penalty Charge Notices (PCNs) on Waterloo Street, including 44 after 5pm.
"Cars parked illegally or without consideration for others can make it harder for pedestrians and other road users to get around safely and put people at risk.
"We will continue to take action against vehicles parked in breach of parking restrictions, including issuing PCNs where needed. Our aim is to keep roads and pavements safe and accessible for everyone."
