LIVING in Somerset, it is not unusual to get frustrated with parking.
Narrow lanes, roadside homes and the latest cars that seem to get bigger each year, can make it difficult for many to find a spot within a mile of their front door, it feels.
And the parking of others can be a frustration too, be it when they choose to perch on the pavement, or perhaps a touch too close to the already-narrow entrance to your driveway, should you be lucky enough to have one.
One Somerset village where parking is at a premium is Pilton, near Shepton Mallet.
The sleepy, quite literal hollow, is a rabbit warren of narrow streets, where residents battle to find a place they can pull up and leave their car in peace.
In fact, it has become such a concern for households, the Traffic Working Group at Pilton Parish Council (PPC) is looking at parking issues in the area, with a report due in the coming months.
Councillors have previously expressed frustration over parking, and even hinted at the introduction of double yellow lines to stop people stopping, as it were.
Another perpetual problem for villagers in places like Pilton, is speeding.
To combat it, this summer, a 20mph limit was brought in through the village – the first in the county to see the change as part of a new speed-cutting initiative.
If you don’t know it, the A361 runs straight through Pilton, leading to Glastonbury in one direction, Shepton Mallet in the other. So it gets quite busy – and quite dangerous.
Many passing through choose to ignore the temporary reduction in speed required, leaving villagers crossing the road to take their lives in their hands.
Anyway, as part of work to prepare for the introduction of the new speed limit, warning signs were painted on roads leading in to the village.
But that was not all…
VILLAGERS were somewhat surprised to find one other set of lines had been painted in Shop Lane – a popular route leading to the Co-op, Pilton Club and the Village Hall.
A very specific set of lines had been painted outside a single driveway.
The H-lines, as they are known, indicate an area vehicles are urged not to park – you will have seen them before, stretching across a dropped kerb, usually.
Residents thought it strange, as there had been no prior notification of new lines, or parking restrictions, being introduced in the village.
And while it may sound a small thing, Pilton is a very pretty village and is in a conservation area, so there are strict rules on what can be done – and where.
AS we said, parking in Pilton is an issue – one being looked into further by the powers that be, as noted above.
Those powers are the parish council’s Traffic Working Group.
A member of that group – indeed, chair of it at some point is seems – is Councillor Tom Hollings, also vice chair of the council, pictured inset right.
That’s one person to check with about how these lines came to be. Another would be to speak to whoever’s house it is that has been selected as deserving of new lines to protect their parking access.
That person, it turns out, is Cllr Hollings.
Yes, the only driveway in Pilton that had white lines painted on the street outside was the driveway of the vice chair of the parish council and member of the Traffic Working Group, which is currently looking into parking issues in the village…
The lines have now disappeared – another mystery…
NATURALLY, such a coincidence sparked our interest – and we were not alone.
A complaint has been lodged with Somerset Council – which controls the highways of the county – urging it to look into how these lines came to be.
We asked Cllr Hollings if he knew how and why they were painted outside his house.
He implied he didn’t know.
“Neither myself, the Traffic Working Group nor PPC organised nor paid for the line to be painted,” he told your Leveller.
“I believe the Parish Clerk has written to the complainant directly to explain this is therefore not a council issue.
“The line was presumably painted in error and has now been removed.”
Yes, following the complaint to Somerset Council, the lines disappeared. The plot thickens.
We asked Pilton Parish Council if they knew anything about it.
Again, they deny any knowledge – of anything – except the line’s previous existence.
“There was, indeed, a white line painted on the street in Shop Lane,” said parish clerk, Gill Pettitt.
“It has now been removed.
“The parish council has been in conversation with Highways about this, who informed us that it had been painted in error and that the department had instructed for it to be removed.
“The parish council was not involved with the painting of the white line or the removal as it is not within its powers.
“Unfortunately, we cannot answer your questions on how it came to be painted in the first place, or who installed them, however Highways have assured me that costs have not been borne by public money.”
It seemed all roads led to Somerset Council, so we asked if they could explain how these lines came to be painted in this spot, seemingly for no reason whatsoever, and indeed, who went on to remove them.
Unfortunately, what they said only added to the mystery.
A spokesperson told us: “Somerset Council was anonymously informed that a white marking had been installed on Shop Lane, Pilton.
“An instruction was placed for its removal.
“However, the marking was removed before our contractor attended to carry out the work.”
So, we don’t know how it got there, who requested it, who made this completely random error, or how much it has cost – and we also have no idea who removed the lines.
Bizarre indeed.
We will park this for now, but we have a feeling the tale of the mysterious white lines has not been fully told. Yet.
READ MORE: Click here for an update in the mystery of the Pilton white lines…
- This exclusive is the front-page story of the September edition of the Somerset Leveller. Click here to read the full digital magazine…
Just to let you know that the mysterious white line has reappeared! A neighbour (I live in Pilton) says he saw Councillor Hollings on his hands and knees painting over the line. Yesterday, after the torrential rain we had, the concrete and chipping he used to cover it up started to wash away. I have contacted Somerset County Council to see whose responsibility it would be if there was an accident on an unauthorised road surface – theirs or Councillor Hollings? No response from them yet.