I REFER to the stretch of Holton Road from its junction with Tynewydd Road (Kings Square) and the gates across it by the old Barry & District Shop/Office.

My understanding is that the gates are closed between 10.30am and late afternoon (6pm?), (Monday - Saturday, except Tuesday) so that it is pedestrianised during the most popular shopping hours. The period up to 10.30am is very popular with "motorists" popping into the shops/banks/offices.

I was parked there this morning, as I had an appointment with my bank (NatWest), and upon returning to my car at approximately 10.45am, with other cars still parked, I observed a Traffic Enforcement Officer photographing my car. I spoke to her to enquire why she had taken a photo of my car, and her reply was "that I was parked on double yellow lines without a disabled blue badge, and that for the last five months they had been enforcing the instruction to book people parking without blue badges."

There was no ticket on my car, possibly because she had taken the photo and had not had the time to write out a penalty notice, so I believe that in this instance, that I will not get fined, but my concern is that the council has changed its policy on parking in this stretch of road, without consultation, or publicising, the change of use.

Everyone I know, and have spoken to, all agree that the council policy, despite the road having double yellow lines marked, was to enable all motorists to use the short term "pedestrian" stretch of road until mid-morning. If that is, or was never, the case, then the council failed to publicise its policy when it introduced the "closed gates" system at 10.30am (Monday - Saturday, except Tuesday), and/or failed to publicise its change of heart when it instructed, five months ago, the Traffic Enforcement Officers to book non-blue badge cars.

I would guess that that the vast majority of cars that park between 6pm and 10.30am (next day) do not have blue badges, yet believe that it is in order, and in line with council policy, to park.

If council policy was/is that only blue badge holders are allowed to park, then it should publicise the policy, put up notices in the "pedestrian" area, as what I discovered this morning, leads me to the assumption that the council is using the situation to penalised "innocent" motorists to swell its decreasing coffers! It must come clean, and inform the motorists, who use, and put a lot of money into, the shops/businesses in Holton Road, which may alter if the draconian change of parking restrictions is enforced.

Mike Stafford

Address supplied