Appin Terrace residents' fury over Perth College students parking

Nov 25 2011 Perthshire Advertiser Friday

Residents driven to distraction

CAR-driving students at Perth College are causing residents a daily nightmare in their every day lives, a councillor has claimed.

Illegal parking at Appin Terrace, often right next to garages and parking on both sides of the narrow Letham street, is preventing people from getting their own vehicles out while students at the nearby institution attend classes.

Blocking

The issue has been picked up by Councillor Callum Gillies who has been in touch with the college and council over the matter.

He told the PA yesterday: “It’s a daily occurrence for residents here.

“Today there are about a dozen cars blocking access or making life difficult for people to get their own cars out from the garages.

“It extends down the hill and the road is can be very narrow because of it.”

And Cllr Gillies, a nearby resident, said he hopes that a parking solution from the college is forthcoming, which could mean bringing in a private contractor to help out.

“While that’s likely to be some time off and we’d need to consult residents on that, it’s clear this cannot continue as it is,” he added.

Duncan White, Perth College UHI director of resources, said: “I had a very constructive meeting with Councillor Gillies in October to discuss illegal parking in Appin Terrace and agreed to progress some initiatives to try and address this concern.

“We are still engaged in discussion with officers from the council's housing department to take these forward.

“In the meantime, we will again appeal to our staff and students to park with respect to Appin Terrace resident and road users.”

A spokesperson for the council said no residents had complained to it over the issue.

They said yesterday: “We are aware of the concern raised by Cllr Gillies regarding parking problems in Appin Terrace.

“We are happy to work with Perth College to help address the situation.”