When Christopher Webb visited Ross and noticed that the painted lines designating the parking areas in the Market Place as loading bays had worn away, he knew that Herefordshire Council had fallen foul of the law. And he was determined that motorists should not have to pay a penalty when the Council was at fault. He decided to stand up to them and he alerted members of the public through the Ross Gazette and also contacted the local MP.

Mr Webb told the Ross Gazette that he and his wife had been in Ross on May 15th, and as he is a professional driver he always looks to check any parking restrictions. He saw the signs for the loading bay but also noticed that there were no road markings identifying this space as a loading or disabled space. He told the Gazette that he knew that tickets issued there would not be enforceable, as the law states that the signage must be clear and visible and the road markings must be legible and unbroken.

He told the Ross Gazette that he informed the Civil Enforcement Officers issuing tickets that day, to vehicles parked in what they believed were loading bays, that they had no legal backing.

He wanted to let readers know that any tickets issued while the lines were not legible should not be paid. The Gazette published this on May 20th and also contacted Herefordshire Council for their opinion on the issue. Their spokesman said that the lines would be repainted in due course.

Mr Webb contacted MP Jesse Norman, the MP for Ross-on-Wye. He replied to say that as Mr Webb was not one of his constituents he should contact his own MP, who is Kevin Brennan, MP for Cardiff West. Mr Webb did so and Mr Brennan MP then contacted Herefordshire Council on behalf of Mr Webb.

On June 14th Mr Brennan received a response from Chris Jenner, Head of Technical and Parking Services at Herefordshire Council, confirming that the parking restrictions are unenforceable. He forwarded this letter to Mr Webb who has also forwarded a copy to the Ross Gazette.

He said: “The surface markings have worn away significantly. To ensure compliance with the legal requirements we have suspended enforcement of these two bays until such time the markings are reinstated.”See the full story in this week’s edition of the Ross Gazette, or subscribe to our online edition here