BUSES parked for long periods outside Waitrose superstore at School Way in Okehampton are causing a traffic nuisance in the town centre, according to some residents. Members of West Devon Borough Council?s highway and traffic orders committee heard at a meeting in Tavistock on Friday that two local buses regularly offloaded and picked up passengers at the bus-stop. But members were told there had been complaints that drivers were leaving the vehicles there for long periods of time and either going off or leaving their doors open so passengers, particularly the elderly with their bags of shopping, could have somewhere safe and dry to sit, before the bus set off for outlying villages. Alan Hosking, county councillor for Yelverton Rural, said: ?Installing a niche in the pavement ? to accommodate the buses ? if this was a one-off cost, could be considered.? Roger Mathew, a West Devon Borough councillor, added: ?We must find a suitable place for buses to hover. There is a lot of room near Lidl?s, perhaps they could be catered for here.? Cllr Christine Marsh, the county councillor representing Okehampton Rural, who chaired the committee, added her concerns about the impact of supermarket lorries reversing in the area. Brian George, the local services officer for the county council, said there was a cost element to all this and suggested a meeting should be arranged to discuss the topic, inviting the borough council, the town council, the bus company and the Waitrose, Somerfield and Lidl superstores to discuss the matter. Proprietor of Carmel Coaches Tony Hazell said his country service buses from outlying villages had always been allowed to park up in the bus stop outside Waitrose for two hours while passengers did their shopping ? until now. ?Recently, there has been a bit of a furore about it ? some of the residents have complained about traffic congestion and our elderly passengers are upset because they have always appreciated this service,? he said. Mr Hazell said the buses carried 25 passengers, many of whom l Continued from page 1 were in their 80s and 90s, and as well as being a vital transport link, the visits to Okehampton gave them a chance to have a chat and share a flask of coffee on the coach, plus a place to put their shopping. ?The buses are being blamed for the congestion, but when we are parked up there is enough room for two cars to pass,? he said. ?Unfortunately, local councillors listen to the car driver and do not stick up for public transport and the elderly people who use it.? The bus company proprietor said he would welcome discussions to provide a coach parking area, which is what Okehampton had before Waitrose was built.
