Residents up in arms over parking dilemma in Daly Street

The Daly Street resident said she and other residents in the street want council to review parking there, because the current situation has become untenable.

Daly Street T-intersects with Howick Street at the front entrance of Bathurst Base Hospital, and as such parking in the area is at a premium.

On Wednesday, Mrs Watts was doing her gardening when she heard a car reverse onto her elderly father’s ute, which was parked out the front of her house, it’s tow bar literally going under the ute.

The front of the offending vehicle was also partially blocking Mrs Watts’ neighbour’s driveway. When Mrs Watts told the driver to move the vehicle the woman refused to move it, threw her hands up in the air and walked off saying “I’ve got a meeting to go to.”

Mrs Watts called the police who attended, and said they could send a ticket in the mail for blocking the driveway, but that was it.

She said she was furious, and something needs to be done about the situation.

She said even when people weren’t blocking the driveway, because the street is so narrow and people can park on both sides of the street, residents can’t even reverse out of their own driveway, because of the angle required to get out on the street.

“If we reversed out we’d hit a parked car,” she said.

Among Mrs Watts suggestions was ‘resident only’ parking for the street, similar to what councils in Sydney do, or for council to only allow parking on one side of the street.

“Something needs to be done because everyone is sick of it,” she said.

Mrs Watts said the recent car park expansion at Bathurst Base Hospital had done nothing to ease the congestion in the street.

“It hasn’t made a difference at all. This has always been a problem.

“When people block our driveway, and I ask them to move, they become really nasty about it,” she said.