RESIDENTS, councillors and transport campaign groups have united to call for action to stop “hazardous” parking outside Cam and Dursley rail station.

Concerns about cars parked on a blind bend in Box Road, immediately outside the entrance to the station, have put the spotlight on the lack of parking at the station once again.

Members of Cam and Dursley Transportation Group organised a meeting at the station with councillors, council officers and residents to call for action to resolve the situation.

Due to a lack of spaces in the station car park, drivers have resorted to parking in the road – a move that has been described as dangerous by other road users.

Lee Tuckwell, an engineer for Severn Trent Water, said this had made it difficult for lorries to get through to access the nearby sewage treatment works.

“We have about four or five 30-tonne lorries coming through each day and the parking has made it almost impossible for our drivers to get through sometimes,” he said.

Severn Trent has had to put cones up in nearby Halmore Lane, which was also being used for parking by commuters, in order to ensure lorries can access the works.

Calls have been made for better public transport connections to the station to reduce the need for commuters to drive there.

Wendy Thomas, of Cam and Dursley Transportation Group, said: “The station car park is regularly full by 8am meaning that commuters are parking out in the road and in the station entrance – reducing that to one-way – or in other off-limit areas.

“Cars parking around the bend in Box Road are reducing visibility and some are parking partially on the pavement.

“This situation is particularly hazardous for pedestrians as they must walk in the road, often in the dark, and wheelchair users or those with pushchairs are particularly disadvantaged.”

Cam Parish Council has agreed to a scheme, in conjunction with station owners Great Western Railway through a £10,000 grant, to provide six extra spaces in the car park.

But Wendy said: “The additional parking is great but it’s only a partial solution. We need Gloucestershire County Council to prioritise investigating the return of a regular rail link bus service to the station to reduce the number of cars.”

County councillor Brian Tipper (Con, Cam Valley) said finding a solution was difficult.

“Parking here is something that we know is an issue and is one that is constantly being looked at,” he said.

“Unfortunately it’s difficult because it’s going to require land and money – we’re trying to get some funding through Section 106 money (funds provided for the community by developers granted permission for housing developments).

“People are using the station from all over the county and it’s an issue that needs to be resolved on a larger scale – we need to get some financial support from other areas.”

Alan Bently, integrated transport manager at GCC, said: “We know that Cam and Dursley Station is increasingly popular with commuters.

“There are regular bus services operated by Stagecoach to Cam & Dursley station (60 and 65), which link the station to neighbouring towns.

“We’d encourage people to leave their cars at home if possible and to consider other road users and residents when parking.”