30 fines for dangerous parking issued at Peak District beauty spot

The tickets – which include £100 fines and three points on the driver’s licence – were issued at Padley Gorge, in the Hope Valley, all for parking against double white lines in the centre of the road.

Police said these road markings are only used on roads that are so dangerous that overtaking and parking is prohibited, due to the risk presented to road users.

Chief Inspector Becky Webster, of Derbyshire Police, said: “Over the last few weeks we have seen a large number of people accessing beauty spots across the county.

“All of these locations have parking provisions but, sadly, these have a limit. Instead of finding a safe and legal place to park some drivers have decided to put themselves and other road users in serious danger.

“The roads that we have seen the fines given out on are higher speed roads with a solid white line system in place. These markings mean that parking and overtaking are prohibited.

“To support road users understanding signs are present in certain locations, such as Padley Gorge.

“What is really concerning is that people are still choosing to park next to these signs, leaving their vehicles while they enjoy a day out in the countryside – with what appears to be no consideration for other road users.”

On the other side of the county, the ever-popular areas of Dovedale and Thorpe have also been extremely busy, police said – again with parking again becoming an issue at both sites.

Editor's message: Thank you for reading this story. The dramatic events of 2020 are having a major impact on our advertisers and thus our revenues. The Star is more reliant than ever on you taking out a digital subscription to support our journalism. You can subscribe here www.thestar.co.uk/subscriptions for unlimited access to Sheffield news and information online. Every subscription helps us continue providing trusted, local journalism and campaign on your behalf for our city.