Council staff have agreed to carry out a review of the pavement parking ban on Broomhill Avenue after I highlighted residents’ concerns to them.

Residents told me they believe the ban has resulted in access problems for larger vehicles.

The review is likely to take some time and the pavement parking ban remains in place meantime.

The email I received from Council staff says:

“Dear Councillor,

“Thank you for your email regarding introducing pavement parking exemption on Broomhill Avenue.

“The Scottish Government introduced the pavement parking prohibition to ensure a safe access for pedestrians and those wheeling on pavements.

“Using the Scottish Government’s criteria, Aberdeen City Council conducted a survey through a consultant who assessed our network and determined roads that meets the criteria. The criterion for exemption requires that a width of 1.5 metres of the footway must remain unobstructed when any part of a vehicle is parked on it, and the layout of the carriageway associated with the footway must allow the passage of an emergency vehicle unimpeded by parked vehicles.

“Following the outcome of the survey, a traffic regulation order that will allow exemption from the footway parking prohibition is being processed for the identified street.

“We understand that there may be a few other streets that meet the Scottish Government’s requirements and where a need for an exemption might be required, Officers will assess Broomhill Avenue to determine the most suited form of traffic management measure for it. While pavement parking exemption will be the best measure for some street, other measures such as prohibition of waiting restriction (double yellow lines) will be a more suited form of traffic management for others. We will contact you by with the details and outcome of our assessment once it is complete, this will be done by email.

“Please note that traffic prohibition and restriction orders must be progressed through a traffic regulation order (TRO). The process of introducing a TRO is lengthy as various levels of consultation is required, hence, it can take several months to complete.

“In the meantime, I would point out that drivers have a responsibility to park safely, not causing an obstruction to pedestrians or other vehicles, including emergency services vehicles. This may mean that their parking location will change from a previous arrangement.

“If traffic is obstructed from routing along a road, this should be reported to Police Scotland on the non-emergency number.”

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