Plans to return coach parking to the Station Road site in Matlock Bath now look to include year-round provision after further details of proposals by Derbyshire Dales District Council (DDDC) were obtained.
That includes the period between November and February, when named travellers to whom DDDC has a homelessness obligation may be present. Such news quickly saw health and safety worries aired around proximity of coaches to the travellers during that period.
The coach area at Station Road is currently out of use entirely to serve as temporary accommodation for the travellers. That has proved controversial, with Matlock Bath Parish Council (MBPC) having called for an immediate return to coach and car parking and for steps to be taken to prevent the travellers returning.
A motion adopted by DDDC on 9 December 2024 will, subject to planning permission, allow the travellers to occupy part of the site from November to February only. If that progresses, it will be in place for two years from the date of adoption and is pending the delivery of a permanent site for the group.
Plans under that arrangement show that the traveller compound at Station Road will be where car parking spaces are marked. However, it is adjacent to the coach area, leading some groups to question safety when coaches are manoeuvring.
It was previously suggested by MBPC that during the winter period, no coach parking would be possible. The group of named travellers are currently absent, with a DDDC spokesperson advising that they left “some weeks ago” for a site in Ashbourne. It is not known if they plan to return.
MBPC Chair Peter Baranek says it is seeking clarity on the position. He adds that “despite requests, no attempt has been made to look at how the whole car and coach park site can be made secure from other traveller groups.”
Additionally, Mr Baranek has aired concerns about the named travellers not parking in the designated area, and around what may happen if they do not leave for the busier period between March and October. Addressing such points is “crucial” if the site is to remain viable and attractive to coach operators, one trade body says.
DDDC’s spokesperson comments that the local authority will not comment on specifics of planning applications until they are published. For those relating to the traveller group, that will be one week prior to a meeting to consider them, although the latter has not yet been scheduled.
