Government wants council to revisit TT parking restrictions

But council says it's received no complaints 

TT organisers say they want Douglas City Council to revisit parking restrictions around The Grandstand. 

The amount of space in Noble's Park available for parking has been reduced for this year's TT by the Council.

The Department for Enterprise says despite more space being provided at St George's Football Club there's been an overall reduction in parking spaces of about 1,000 square feet.

These people who drove or rode to The Grandstand on Wednesday (5 June) had mixed success:

The Department for Enterprise, which runs the TT, says it "raised concerns" with Douglas City Council about its decision to reduce parking in Noble's Park before the fortnight:

"The department did raise clear concerns with Douglas City Council in the run up to the event surrounding their decision and the potential impact this could have on the adjacent residential streets, and emergency services, and whilst fully appreciative of their permission to lease the overall site for the event, is keen to revisit some of these decisions post event, armed with feedback from various stakeholders including the nearby residents.

"Ultimately for a festival now of this size, and importance, the department would ideally like to see maximisation of all the available space to support accessibility for visiting fans and residents whilst also minimising the impact on surrounding residential areas."

Some Manx Radio listeners have expressed concerns about the number of disabled spaces available at The Grandstand.

The Department for Enterprise says there's been an overall increase in spaces available for blue badge holders.

No Complaints

Douglas Council says it's not received any complaints about car parking issues at the TT Grandstand after reducing the capacity of Noble's Park.
It's also confirmed no concerns have been raised about vehicles using side streets or the location of the disabled parking.

It follows concerns raised on social media following the council's decision to offer motorcycle and permit only parking this year.

Visitors travelling to the area in vehicles have been asked to use public transport or park elsewhere.

A spokesperson for the council told the Local Democracy Reporting Service: "It was agreed with the Department for Enterprise that disabled parking, motorbike parking and parking for those working on site would continue and that spectator car parking would be sited elsewhere.

"There are very few, if any, worldwide sporting events where you can park exactly where the event is as people either park off site or are bused in.

‘Naturally, we want to help though so the parking at St George’s was set up for car park spectators who are also encouraged to use take public transport."
The local authority says the arrangement could be 'reviewed' with the Department of Enterprise in a post-event debrief.