Increasing number of airbnb's and second homes
| Michael Flanagan |
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Mon 7 Aug 2023, 19:26 "People in Charlbury who do not have off street parking would I am sure welcome a parking permit scheme." Patronising twaddle. I think I'm right in saying that most people (just) in Charlbury don't have off street parking: something that virtually no-one has in the historic, densely-populated, areas of Park St/Church St/Church Lane, Market St/Sheep St/ Hixet Wood, Dyers Hill, Pooles Lane and their interconnecting side streets. Most of us, in my experience, would rather put up with the (to be honest, only occasional) hassle than the guaranteed cost and hassle of a parking permit scheme - which in any case can't guarantee we'll be able to park where we want when we want to. But I may be wrong. There IS a case for a town referendum on the issue, since the County really can't make a decision on this without a clear test of Charlbury opinion. And if there's one thing we must have learned from the 2016 national referendum on EU membership, it's that such things can be highly divisive - and it's absolutely essential advocates of change know exactly what will happen if their proposal is adopted. That means at least as much time and energy going into deciding what, exactly, would replace the status quo as into deciding the principle of permitting. Getting agreement in principle, followed by a democratically determined new system and then getting that system properly implemented will take several years. Which is one of several reasons I think it's a rotten idea, and I suspect most other people in the historic centre agree with me. As so often: enforcing existing rules properly is probably just as effective. Last night two anti-social tossers parked mini SUVs half on the pavement, and wholly on double yellows, all night long where Church St bends into Park St. If we had one of those new robotic tower-awayers to drag them off and batter them into two piles of scrap metal, they'd never come back and be a nuisance again. And the rest of us wouldn't have to bother with permits. |