Businesses devastated by floods slam council for hitting repair workers with “relentless” parking tickets

Repair worker Gavin says "we even have to watch our backs when we're unloading now"

Businesses trying to recover from the devastating flood in Rochdale town centre have slammed the council as their repair workers are being hit with “relentless” parking fines.

Due to the heavy equipment needed to carry out repairs, vans and trucks are having to park on The Butts to be close to the premises they are working on. However, despite the exceptional circumstances, Rochdale Borough Council has said that normal parking rules apply, and that workers should park in the designated parking areas to avoid getting fined.

Barbara Fearnley, from La Mancha Tapas Bar, The Butts, said: “It's not just us, there are workers all over town who are getting absolutely stung by this. They've painted all these double yellow lines everywhere and made it impossible for anyone to park. I get that they need to have rules around the town, but we were absolutely destroyed by the floods. I thought part of their job was to help us recover.”

Worker Gavin, who is working on repairing Ladbrokes, The Butts, said: “The woman who comes over here planting tickets is here all the time. It's a gold mine for the council isn't it, we even have to watch our backs when we're unloading now, just in case. It's not really fair, they could give us some leeway considering we're trying to get businesses back up and running.”

Steve Reay, highways services manager at Rochdale Borough Council, said: “We do recognise the need for traders to work on refurbishing flood-damaged shops, however normal parking rules are in force in the town centre which means they cannot park outside the shops during the day. We are now in the process of finding a suitable alternative location where workmen will be able to park their vans.”