RESIDENTS in a narrow street near the centre of Worcester are demanding action is taken to stop inconsiderate drivers parking on pavements by their homes.

People living in Fort Royal Hill are fed up with car users blocking the pavement and making the road hazardous to drive down.

Residents met Worcester City Council ward member Coun Lynn Denham and ward member with the county council Paul Denham – who is also deputy mayor of the city – over their concerns in October, but so far no action has been taken.

Resident Penny Perrett said she and her neighbours had been plagued by the problem for years.

“Residents of Fort Royal Hill have fought an unsuccessful struggle to put the cars, many owned by freeloading commuters, back on the kerb side where they belong,” she said.

“Repeatedly we have been told that the parking practise was not illegal and was necessary to provide sufficient parking spaces and to allow a flow of traffic including emergency services swift movement and access.”

But she said the road was often used as a ‘rat run’ by drivers avoiding Sidbury and City Walls Road, which are frequently congested and can become extremely busy during rush hours.

“Although we would like to see our street not used as a free car park we compromised and suggest that parking bays should go onto the edge of the pavement as an attempt to get vehicles to park with more respect for the pedestrian,” she said.

“What happens currently is that because of the amount of traffic, cars very frequently get damaged and so they park well onto the pavement to avoid this.”

In September Ms Perrett’s car was hit for the third time while parked on the road, leaving her with a hefty repair bill.

Coun Paul Denham said he was working closely with the council’s highways department to find a solution to the problem.

“Worcester needs parking constraint zones in the central area designed to limit parking by non-residents,” he said.

“At present, many streets in central Worcester's residential areas are full of commuters' vehicles daytime Monday to Friday because the space is free.

“I would like to have non-residents limited to a maximum of one hour on these streets so that they park in off-street car parks for longer periods. The town of Beverley in East Yorkshire operates a very successful such scheme.”

A spokesman from Worcester City Council said enforcement officers would be patrolling the area and taking action against those breaking regulations.

“We urge all drivers to park considerately and ensure that the pavement is not obstructed to pedestrians, prams, pushchairs and wheelchairs,” he said.

A spokesman from Worcestershire County Council said there was little highways department could do to address the problem and if residents wanted a lower speed limit enforced they should contact West Mercia Police but a spokesman from the force said it had not been made aware of concerns in the area.