Patrols launched to tackle problem parking at Lake District beauty spots

People are being reminded to park properly when visiting beauty spots in the Lake District.

Cumberland Council said patrols will take place in the Borrowdale Valley to help manage how visitors behave, as parking problems keep happening.

The council said areas with an increase of visitors, like Borrowdale Valley, Wasdale Valley, Stonethwaite, and Black Moss Pot in Langstrath Valley, are seeing more and more issues with poor parking.

Image credit: Photo © Ben Brooksbank (cc-by-sa/2.0)

Bad parking can block the way for emergency services, local people, and farmers.

Visitors are being asked to park safely and legally, making sure there’s enough room for emergency vehicles and farm traffic on narrow country roads.

Cumberland councillor Denise Rollo, who looks after sustainable and connected places, said: “We want everyone to enjoy this beautiful area, but they need to park responsibly. Poor parking on tight roads can force people to walk in the road, which is dangerous.”

Image credit: Photo © The Carlisle Kid (cc-by-sa/2.0)

She added: “It’s really important that emergency services and farmers can always get through. A blocked road could stop someone getting help in an emergency or cause problems for local farms.”

The council also said it’s moving forward with plans to expand shuttle bus trials this year.

The Buttermere Shuttle will run every weekend and bank holiday in May, June, July and August, with a small fee to ride.

The Wasdale Explorer, which was set up with the Wasdale Action Group, will run more often this year and will be free, thanks to support from Cumberland Council.

Remember - LeaveNoTrace!

As with anywhere outdoors, kindly keep these areas pristine and wild by taking all trash with you. The amount of complaints we have seen since the pandemic is crazy. It's really not that hard to take your rubbish with you!

Litter tends to spread, so if you see any and are able to pick it up and dispose of it outside the hidden gem, it will help keep the area tidy.

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Users will also have acess to over 9,000 parking spots across the UK as well as over 1,600 staycations in the UK.