‘Stop this dehumanising set-up’, plead residents fed-up with reckless motorists

By Robert Firth, Local Democracy Reporter

Residents say they fear walking down their street because of dangerous drivers who illegally park on the pavement and speed down the road.

People living in Sandhurst Road in Hither Green, Lewisham, say neighbours’ cars have been damaged by careless motorists, while prams and wheelchairs struggle to weave past vehicles that are partially parked on pavements.

They claim a lack of enforcement from Lewisham council has emboldened the rule-breaking drivers, who treat their side street as a short-cut and free parking area. Residents are now calling on the authority to launch a crackdown on dangerous drivers and consider plans for a low-traffic neighbourhood in the area.

Matthew Sparkes, 41, who moved to the area a year ago, said: “The traffic is insane at times. We had a monitor up and it was tracking 8,000 cars a day at one point. The council has allowed people to park on the pavement. It’s an attractive cut-through and it has turned into a main road.”

He added: “It’s coming to a head. Everybody seems annoyed about buses hitting their cars and people are annoyed about not being able to go by with a pram. You walk to town with the other half and you have to walk single file the whole time. It’s a dehumanising set-up.”

He added: “I would like the council to get cars off the pavement but I think they need to build a low-traffic neighbourhood really. The rare times it’s blocked by roadworks it’s a dream.”

Ann Coppinger, who lives just off Sandhurst Road, said: “My concern is for small children who come out with their parents. They have to weave around cars that are 100 per cent on the pavement.

“Some of the buses, if they have a clear run, they go for it. It’s downhill. There’s a temptation to speed up when there’s a downwards run.”

Lewisham council said it had ‘significantly’ increased patrols in the area in response to residents’ concerns about illegal pavement parking on Sandhurst Road and had been issuing drivers with more fines.

A spokesman said: “In the last 12 months there was a nearly seven-fold increase in total time spent patrolling Sandhurst Road alone from the previous period.

“Our enforcement team issued seven times the amount of penalty charge notices for pavement parking on Sandhurst Road in the last six months, compared to the previous period.

“Whilst we may not be able to eradicate obstructive and or inconsiderate parking altogether, we will continue to patrol this area until we see an improvement in compliance.”

Pictured top: Nat and Matthew Sparkes illustrate the issue of cars parked on the pavement on Sandhurst Road, Hither Green (Picture: Facundo Arrizabalaga/MyLondon)