Ross Newton, of Ashprington, writes:
County councillor Paula Black's assertion last week that parking on pavements in Totnes is 'affecting everybody in our society', indicates a remarkable loss of memory on her part.
Revisit the Totnes Times in the early part of 2010 and you will find that the very same councillor, together with the county council's highways chief, John Halliday, was responsible for the introduction of of a residents' parking pemit scheme in Totnes which quadrupled the pavement parking problem overnight.
Worse still is the fact that they failed to reveal to the South Hams Highway and Traffic Highways Committee the existence of the Parsons Brinckerhoff report, commissioned by the county's highways department, which strongly advised against the introduction of a residents parking scheme before both parking facilities and public transport were considerably improved.
The report emphasised that as car parking arrangements in Totnes were already woefully inadequate, any attempt to restrict parking on side streets would automatically result in an increase in undesirable parking practices. This is exactly what has happened.
However, Cllr Black and Mr Halliday are not alone in thinking that Totnes can function without adequate car parks;
Cllr Julian Brazil, reported in the same edition, believes that its okay to build 500 new homes without car parking spaces, and the Baltic Wharf developers are planning a site which is guaranteed to give Totnes an additional parking problem due to inadequate parking provision.
In promoting this 'head in the sand' type of attitude, these people are guilty of attempting to kill our town's fragile economy, aided and abetted by South Hams Council which provides less off-road parking than we had 25 years ago, and a county council highways department which appears determined to gridlock the town and the A385 corridor by utilising whatever re-routing or anti-parking device which will create the biggest problem.
Totnes needs saving from these people and their supporters now!