DRIVERS who park their cars on the pavement should be fined £100, according to one Middlewich Town councillor.

Cllr Vicky Perez, who uses a wheelchair and a guide dog, backed borough-wide plans to permanently stop the behaviour.

Cllr Perez told the LDRS: “Pavement parking should be banned. It doesn’t just affect people in wheelchairs. The elderly generation, guide dog users, they’re also affected too.”

The Kinderton ward member says the issue is particularly dangerous for guide dog users, as their four-legged companions are taught to view the road as dangerous.

She added that if a car is then parked in the pavement and blocks the walking route, guide dogs will be unsure as to what to do because they have been trained to avoid walking on the roadway.

When it comes to the topic of punishment, Cllr Perez said: “I would like to see that when [a fine] is dished out, they take a photo of the car’s registration plate then the registration with the fine should be seen on the system.

“It goes to show that there will be consequences.”

Last week, CEC cycling and walking champion Cllr Suzie Akers Smith said the council was ‘committed to banning pavement parking’.
The independent representative added: “People parking on pavements affects everybody but especially the most vulnerable people in society, those using mobility scooters, blind or partially sighted, children and the elderly, parents with pushchairs.

“They should be our priority and a ban on pavement parking demonstrates this.”
However, Cllr Akers Smith also admitted that much of the strength of CEC’s proposals will depend on the results of an ongoing government consultation, where it could be the case that watered-down plans are CEC’s only option if the government opts to avoid an England-wide ban.