Police and parking wardens are patrolling schools across Bath as the new school year begins.

Bathwick residents and councillors have long urged action against poor parking at our local schools, St Mary’s and King Edward’s. Both have been inluded in a list of twenty four across BathNES targeted for attention. Aside from the frustration caused to neighbours, inconsiderate parking near schools is often of danger to the pupils attending.

At King Edward’s School on North Road, I’ve been part of the school travel plan group looking at bus, cycle and car share schemes as well as parking outside the school. While the current parking arrangements on North Road and Cleveland Walk should be improved, parked parents who break the rules should expect a ticket. This especially includes the four wheel drive which parks on the corner of the juntion every afternoon – you know who you are!

I’ve also joined the Sustainable Routes to School project at Bathwick St Mary’s which promotes alternatives to driving. Key to this is the set of crossings around the Warminster and Sydney Road junction which I have raised with the council highways department several times.

Hopefully pupils and parents can take the opportunity of a new school year with (so far) reasonable weather to explore walking, biking or busing to school. If not, watch out for the parking inspectors!