Moray Council has been urged to use new powers to enforce a pavement parking ban in Elgin.
There are widespread concerns about the number of cars and vans mounting kerbs in the town centre.
Elgin Bid has warned “lives are at risk” due to motorists ignoring existing rules.
During just five hours last month, the Press and Journal spotted 12 drivers parked on High Street pavements.
Now Moray Council has been urged to use new powers granted by the Scottish Government giving local authorities the ability to issue fines for those ignoring the rules.
However, it remains uncertain whether the powers will be used to enforce the pavement parking ban in Elgin and the rest of the region.
Will pavement ban be enforced in Moray?
Powers giving councils the ability to issue £100 fines, reduced to £50 if paid within 14 days, came into force on December 11.
Transport minister Fiona Hyslop described the issue as “unsafe and unfair”, particularly for those with mobility issues and for parents with prams.
Aberdeen City, Aberdeenshire and Highland councils have all stated they will begin enforcement later this year following an initial grace period where warning letters will instead be issued.
However, Moray Council says the new powers will be subject to “further discussion” before being used.
Elgin resident Neil Alexander, leader of Moray Liberal Democrats, described the current situation in the town centre as “chaos”.
He said: “The issue of illegal parking has been long standing with the council leadership failing to take action
“This is about the safety of pedestrians and supporting local businesses. It’s time the council stood up and took decisive action.
“It’s only a matter of time before someone gets hurt and the council should be taking action to prevent that from happening now.”
Despite not planning to enforce the pavement parking ban in the short-term, Moray Council has already outlined some streets that will be exempt to allow access for emergency services and service vehicles.
What is being done to solve Elgin’s parking problems?
Police have already had powers to fine drivers for parking on pavements.
However, local officers say they do not have the resources to monitor the issue and other complaints routinely.
Moray Council has proposed installing bollards at key locations in the town centre that would rise and fall to coincide with existing pedestrianisation timings.
The installations would mean drivers would be physically blocked from parking on the central section of the High Street during those times.
However, the bollards will not extend to the west end of the High Street, where pavement parking concerns have been widely reported.
Conversation