Parking row forces closure of long-standing local garage

Mount Street Garage in Bishops Lydeard shuts down after 20 years due to parking restrictions

Parking row forces closure of long-standing local garage
Image: Google Streetview

Mount Street Garage in Bishops Lydeard has closed its doors after 20 years due to a parking dispute. Owner Tony Evens blames new restrictions at the Village Hall car park, which his customers used.

The Village Hall Committee installed ANPR cameras and implemented a five-hour parking limit, with no overnight parking, resulting in fines for Evens’ customers. He has received £400 in fines himself. He claims the committee ignored his warnings about the impact on his business. The committee states that the restrictions were introduced to address unauthorised all-day parking, preventing hall users from parking. They offer e-permits for the garage, but Mr Evans states these are not suitable as many of his customers cannot collect their vehicles within the five-hour window, particularly if they work out of the area.

Evens says customers have taken their business elsewhere to avoid fines, forcing him to close. He has laid off staff and stopped taking new business, physically closing the garage. He said, “I’m done, they have jeopardised my business and they don’t seem to care. I’ve had to close the workshop because of this and I am broken.”

The closure has saddened the community, with residents expressing their disappointment at the loss of a local business. A local resident even wrote to the Somerset County Gazette to call for a more flexible and pragmatic solution.

Evens, who has been a long-time supporter of the community, expressed his disappointment with the committee’s lack of understanding. He said “It’s a very sad day, the garage has been here since 1908 and it is one of the longest and oldest garages in the area.” He is now considering his options for the site.

Source: The Sun

4 Comments

  1. All good things come to an end, sounds to me the car park belonging to someone else was being abused.

    Reply
  2. He was on to a good thing, like all things, good things come to an end!

    Reply
  3. Wow, we have been trading in the same place in London for 23 years with a garage being located here since 1896. our restrictions were pay as you go between 9am and 5 pm with weekends free,now were 8.30am till 10 pm 7 days per week,wait for it maximum stay is 1 hour only/day. Certainly getting harder. Sad to hear of local garage closure but fear its the tip of the iceberg here in London

    Reply
  4. He can’t dictate how somebody else uses their property, however much it inconveniences him. It’s their car park, not his, and it sounds like it’s being abused. By the way, they are Parking Charge Notices, not ‘Fines’.

    Reply

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