Parking fury after 'entitled' drivers spark gridlock mayhem in quiet village as tempers flare

A quiet lane was gridlocked on Sunday, September 22, with drivers parking on the lane, making it impassable for a long period of time leading some to be branded "entitled"

Fury erupted in a Derby neighbourhood after "unacceptable" parking by "inconsiderate" and "entitled" drivers caused chaos on a small city lane, leading to gridlock and distress for residents and workers.

Haslams Lane in Darley Abbey, which is usually quiet during the week, was brought to a standstill on Sunday morning, with cars parked on the lane making it impassable and sparking angry confrontations. One witness caught up in the mayhem said: "On Sunday, Haslams Lane in Darley Abbey was gridlocked by inconsiderate entitled drivers parking on the lane and making it impossible for vehicles to pass each other."

The situation led to lengthy delays, with people trapped in their cars as tempers flared. The closure of a nearby bridge has exacerbated the problem, leaving only one route for access to the mill and local homes on Folly Road and Haslams Lane, creating a potential risk if emergency services are needed and causing delivery drivers to turn back in frustration.

The weekend congestion around Haslams Lane is often worsened by visitors to the rugby club, Darley Abbey Mills businesses, and the toll bridge's closure on Old Lane, forcing those heading to the mills home to a gym, restaurant, bar, and more to navigate through the rugby traffic.

More than 10 houses on the west side of Haslams Lane, on Folly Road, are causing further delays on busy weekends. At the other end of the lane, near the industrial estate, a floodgate is currently under repair after its seal was damaged earlier this year, reports Derbyshire Live.

This forces inbound traffic to drive on the opposite side of the road to bypass the floodgate, leading to a bottleneck at the entrance and creating additional issues for drivers.

Following the parking chaos, the chairman of Derby Rugby Football Club issued a statement to reassure locals and motorists that this was merely a "one-off". Chairman Martyn Murny stated: "This was a one-off and a result of a breakdown in communications on our end."

"We do have processes to prepare for weekend parking, but this did not work as expected. We did resolve the situation as quickly as we could in the morning and got people parked up in the designated parking areas. The situation was also made worse because of the damaged floodgate base, which is currently coned off for half of the road, making access to and from Haslams Lane more difficult."

"This issue is meant to be resolved by the local authority, to which we understand that this should be repaired this month, but has been in this state for some months now." Martyn added that he has communicated with residents who reported the problem to him directly and via social media.

The rugby club has vowed to do "all it can" to prevent a repeat of recent problems this coming Sunday, planning a thorough Monday morning review of their protocols on September 23. Meanwhile, Derby City Council has been forced to admit a setback concerning the floodgate project on Haslams Lane due to contractor delays, missing the end-of-September deadline.

A spokesperson for Derby City Council explained, "The Haslams Lane floodgate works by creating a tight seal against a steel plate attached to the road to prevent water from getting though. Unfortunately, the steel plate has dislodged and needs to be replaced by a specialist contractor. The traffic cones are in place to ensure that vehicles and cycles can safely cross the steel plate."

"We had hoped that the repairs would be finished by the end of September, however due to the contactor's availability this will not be possible. We're sorry for any convenience that this has caused to residents and visitors to the rugby club and are working with the specialist contractor to get the gates repaired as soon as possible."