Kilrea tops for parking tickets

Since traffic wardens were introduced across the North in 2010 a total of 394 penalty notice tickets have appeared on the windscreens of vehicles in Kilrea while the number issued in Garvagh is 30. These are the figures issued in response to a written question by East Derry SDLP Assembly Member John Dallat to the Minister for Regional Development Danny Kennedy. Mr Dallat said:"No one condones irresponsible parking or wishes to make life even more difficult for traffic wardens but it does appear that Kilrea is easy prey for finding victims who are in breach of the regulations, not because they are blocking streets or holding up traffic, parking right up against pedestrian crossings or endangering other road users but because they don’t realise that a single yellow line is the signal to be done for illegal parking. "We are very lucky in Kilrea that our retailers appear to be doing reasonably well, have invested in renewal and refurbishment and a couple of new shops have opened recently. That is all good news but shoppers need to realise that while a place appears perfectly reasonable to park in for a short time there may be traffic wardens lurking round the corner waiting to pounce on unsuspecting motorists. "It is my belief that ‘one penalty ticket fits all’ is not right. While £90 may be appropriate for a parking offence where there is serious risk to other road users or the entrance to emergency vehicles, for example, is blocked it is far too harsh for someone who parks on a single yellow line to nip into a shop for a few seconds and endangers no one. They are not in the league of serial offenders who show no example for anyone and deserve what they get and in the case of Kilrea they appear to be leant on a bit harshly compared to the neighbouring village of Garvagh where only 30 tickets have been issued compared to 394 in Kilrea."