POLICE and parish councillors are calling for parking charges at Yatton railway station to be dropped - in a bid to stop parking problems in the village. Councillors say since charges were introduced at the station car park, commuters have been leaving th

POLICE and parish councillors are calling for parking charges at Yatton railway station to be dropped - in a bid to stop parking problems in the village.Councillors say since charges were introduced at the station car park, commuters have been leaving their cars in nearby streets, clogging up residential roads and causing a traffic hazard.Now, in a move backed by the police, the parish council has written to bosses at First Great Western demanding the free parking is re-instated at the station car parks.Councillors are also asking for a site meeting with train operators to discuss the issue.Yatton Parish Council clerk Xanne Blythe said: "Since the introduction of parking charges the hazardous parking on other local main roads has become a grave and serious road safety issue."Rail users are parking causing serious width reduction, obstructions, parking up to junctions which allows for zero visibility for other vehicles."The hazardous parking is also endangering school children who are dropped off at points near to the railway station and are forced to cross a busy main road with limited visibility due to hazardous parking."Fed up residents of Barberry Farm Road, Kenn Moor Road and Mendip Road have also been writing to the council with their concerns.The parish council is also urging residents to back its campaign by writing to First Great Western calling for the charges to be scrapped.A spokesman for First Great Western, which owns the car park, said: "Our managing director will look at the letter and respond to the parish council in due course."It is highly unlikely that we will remove charges at the car park."If there are no charges, it is often the case that non railway travellers use the car park and when our customers arrive there is nowhere to park."At £1 a day the charges are extremely competitive compared to car parks at other stations across the south west."The income from charges is reinvested in improving the car parks and making them safer."Hazardous car parking on the highway is the responsibility of the police and local authority and this is something which they need to look at."The address for residents to write to asking for free parking to be reinstated is First Great Western Customer Service Team, FREEPOST SWB40576, Plymouth PL4 6ZZ.