COUNCIL road crews worked against the clock to paint double yellow lines at a dale beauty spot before rain set in to prevent further congestion following major problems last week.
Police closed the main route into the upper dale on May 30, after more than 200 cars parked on both sides of the B6277 near Bowlees.
Fearing the situation could be repeated throughout the summer, Durham County Council, the police,
Estates and Strathmore Estates had a meeting on Monday, June 1, to find a solution.
Neighbourhood police Insp Ed Turner said: “We had a meeting to thrash out all sorts of ideas to get some sort of action and working together to find the best solution to try to prevent this happening again.
“A traffic regulation order (TRO) was made and double yellow lines have been painted on both sides of the road from the Bowlees sign up to High Force.
“The TRO was effective from Friday and means the lines are enforceable immediately. We are trying to help the residents in the dale and stop the chaos.”
Dave Wafer, strategic traffic manager at Durham County Council, said: “Following the recent significant increase in visitors to the area and safety concerns regarding parking, we are introducing no waiting at any time restrictions on the road leading to High Force. These restrictions are indicated by double yellow lines.
“The lines will extend from the Bowlees Visitor Centre to join with the existing restrictions near High Force. The lines are being introduced alongside an 18-month temporary TRO, which will be reviewed in due course.
“While we would normally consult the local community before introducing such restrictions, we considered that the safety issues required more immediate action in the current climate.
Newbiggin Resident Nickie Hough welcomed the move and said: “It’s nice that they have finally taken notice of the residents concerns.
“All the people just trying to get home up the dale couldn’t and these people were not local some had come from Manchester and they were really intimidating some of the locals.
“A lot of older couples had wanted to go for a walk, but they couldn’t. It needed to be done and I’m pleased.
“It wasn’t just the parking on the verges that was a problem – they just parked up and pushed stone walls over as well. There was no respect for the area at all.”
Middleton-in-Teesdale and Newbiggin Parish Councillor Andy Mitchell said: “It is a shame that it has had to be necessary to do this.
“The last thing we want to do is chase business away but we do want visitors to respect the area.”
