Call for Town Council bye-laws banning clamping to be fully enacted in Castlebar

Parking problems and wrongful clamping of vehicles were raised at the final meeting of the current Castlebar Municipal District Council

Cllr Cyril Burke said taxi drivers in the town are continuing to experience issues with motorists parking in designated ranks. He said Mayo County Council should consider tasking a traffic warden at weekends to combat the issue.

He said disabled bays at Dunnes Stores are being occupied by people with no disabilities. He cited an example of a couple who claimed the spot of a wheelchair user and then subjected the person to a tirade of abuse when challenged.

He also raised the inadequate parking facilities at Mayo University Hospital. Cllr Burke contended some of the green space at the site could be used for additional car parking spaces.

Cllr Michael Kilcoyne argued that unauthorised clamping is taking place in Castlebar.

He said the former Town Council introduced a bye-law outlawing clamping of any kind. He said this measure was to be included in future planning applications when the functions of the town councils were subsumed into Mayo County Council.

He highlighted two recent instances where the same clamper clamped vehicles when there was no valid reason to.

David Mellett, head of Castlebar Muncipal District, said he was not aware of the bye-law introduced by the former Town Council. He said he would have to examine if it was carried over to Mayo County Council and if it can apply to private car parks.