‘Bank Holiday traffic is killing our towns!’ Residents in picturesque UK spots claim thousands of tourists who flock to them over the long weekend are causing gridlock, overcrowding and destroying the local environment
Residents who live in some of Britain’s most picturesque areas have claimed that thousands of tourists who flock to their homes during the bank holiday weekend are making their lives a misery.
For many Brits the August bank holiday is an opportunity to get out of home’s in towns and cities and escape to the countryside for a well earned break.
Indeed, day trips are among the most popular activities over the long weekend – with data from the RAC suggesting that an estimated 19.2m leisure journeys will be taken over the course of the bank holiday.
But while this escapism brings bliss and tranquility for many, for those living in tourist hotspots across the UK, it only brings chaos and misery. As their towns’ roads become gridlocked and public spaces overcrowded.
In fact residents of a idyllic Cotswolds village, described as being England’s most beautiful, have gone as far to claim that the huge numbers of tourists are turning it into the Wild West.
BIBURY: Residents in Bibury say the visitors cause traffic gridlock, with coaches blocking narrow roads – putting lives at risk and damaging the environment
BOURNEMOUTH: Rather than rushing to the country others prefer a trip to the seaside and with its expanse of golden sand, fine restaurants and trendy music scene Bournemouth is one of the UK’s hottest destinations for tourists
OXFORD: However, in some tourists hotspots the antipathy towards visitors is not as harsh. Residents of Oxford, which is visited by seven million people a year, have little issue with tourism in the town
Bibury, was bursting at the seams yesterday as hundreds of vehicles brought thousands of people to admire the view.
Its residents say the visitors cause traffic gridlock, with coaches blocking narrow roads – putting lives at risk and damaging the environment.
They say some coach drivers react angrily when being spoken to about being illegally parked and there have been allegations of local people being assaulted.
The small picture postcard village, which has just under 600 residents and only four businesses, looked stunning in the early morning sunshine.
Visitors initially had no problem parking for free alongside the River Coln before and visiting Bibury’s main attraction – a 14th century row of cottages called Arlington Row. Which is said to be one of the most photographed sights in the Cotswolds.
But just over an hour later, as coaches began to arrive with dozens of international tourists aboard, it all changed. Suddenly the tiny community became rammed full of people, filling the narrow pavements and eager to take photographs.
Parking became a big issue, especially for coaches as there were only two official parking bays. There was an anxious moment as a coach and a mini-bus nearly collided.
BIBURY: Coaches arrive in Bibury with dozens of international tourists aboard. Suddenly the tiny community became rammed full of people, filling the narrow pavements and eager to take photographs
BIBURY: Parking became a big issue in the area, especially for coaches as there were only two official parking bays
BIBURY: There was an anxious moment in the small village as a coach and a mini-bus nearly collided
BIBURY: Coach driver Edwin Jacob, who had brought passengers for a tour of the Cotswolds from London, said his form of transport was better for the environment than individual cars
Parish council chairman Craig Chapman and the village’s parking working group chairman Mark Honeyball tried to ease the traffic situation in the tiny town.
Mr Honeyball said: ‘It’s the large coaches, they keep turning and turning and cause gridlock. Because of the turning, they have knocked down several residents’ walls, telegraph poles and bollards.
‘It’s like the Wild West. It really is. We’re not exaggerating.’
Tensions have flared in recent times and he said he had been assaulted four times after confronting drivers who had been causing problems. The most serious was earlier this month when he alleged that he was kicked and punched by a coach driver in an incident he said was being investigated by the police.
He added that a 92-year-old resident was recently verbally abused by a driver after she asked him to move his coach.
Mr Honeyball said coach drivers were under pressure to drop their passengers off in the village and quickly move on to other parts of the region.
BIBURY: Mark Honeyball said coach drivers were under pressure to drop their passengers off in the village and quickly move on to other parts of the region
BIBURY: Nick Mazzotta, who sells ice-cream from his van in the village, claimed coaches had bumped into his van, stopped his customers from being able to park near him and also put people queuing by his vehicle at risk
With between 50 and 80 coaches per day coming to Bibury the parish council hopes they will soon be banned from coming into the village.
Mr Chapman said that unlike the nearby tourist destination of Bourton-on-the-Water, where many pubs, cafes, restaurants and hotels benefited from the influx of visitors, Bibury’s businesses had only seen a minor economic lift.
He said: ‘The local community has had enough. We’ve got to the point where local people don’t drive through the village because of the disruption that occurs at its heart.
‘Gloucestershire County Council has said it’s only a matter of time until someone is seriously injured at this point.’
Nick Mazzotta, who sells ice-cream from his van in the village, claimed coaches had bumped into his van, stopped his customers from being able to park near him and also put people queuing by his vehicle at risk.
Coach driver Edwin Jacob, who had brought passengers for a tour of the Cotswolds from London, said his form of transport was better for the environment than individual cars.
BIBURY: With between 50 and 80 coaches per day coming to Bibury the parish council hopes they will soon be banned from coming into the village
BIBURY: Alina Racu and Tatiana Frija, from Moldova, were among the huge number of people checking out Arlington Row. Ms Racu said: ‘I saw pictures of it on Instagram. It’s very nice’
Asked about the traffic issues caused by his and other coaches, he said: ‘Yes, we understand that but we’re just doing our jobs.’
Tourist Carl Barron, from Hertfordshire, was enjoying a break in the village with his family but said he was surprised how busy it was.
He said: ‘It’s insane. It’s like Disneyland. You turn the corner and there are streams of people. Me and my wife thought it was going to be peaceful but it’s absolute chaos.’
But other tourists seemed oblivious to residents’ concerns. Alina Racu and Tatiana Frija, from Moldova, were among the huge number of people checking out Arlington Row.
Ms Racu said: ‘I saw pictures of it on Instagram. It’s very nice.
‘I’ve lived for six years in London, which is a very busy place. I wanted to see a place where you can see how things were in the past.’
Vishnu Sankar and Pallavi Pradeep, from India, were also there taking pictures of the cottages.
Mr Sankar said: ‘We saw them on social media but not everything you see on it is true so we wanted to see it for real. It’s a good place.’
BIBURY: the village was bursting at the seams yesterday as hundreds of vehicles brought thousands of people to admire the view
BIBURY: Vishnu Sankar and Pallavi Pradeep, from India, were also there taking pictures of the cottages. Mr Sankar said: ‘We saw them on social media but not everything you see on it is true so we wanted to see it for real. It’s a good place’
Rather than rushing to the country others prefer a trip to the seaside and with its expanse of golden sand, fine restaurants and trendy music scene Bournemouth is one of the UK’s hottest destinations for tourists.
But the summer-long throng of sightseers pouring into the Dorset city has left locals feeling a little cold.
Many complain the holiday-makers’ noisy, drunken antics, the traffic chaos and rubbish they drop everywhere is making their lives a misery.
And as temperatures rose and hoards of people ventured to the beach, most of those who live in the area choose to stay at home and avoid the ‘dreaded three days of carnage’.
One local we spoke to told us: ‘Looks great in the Insta photos when the beaches and streets are less crowded, but you wouldn’t want to be anywhere near the place on a hot bank holiday weekend.
BOURNEMOUTH: The summer-long throng of sightseers pouring into the Bournemouth has left locals feeling a little cold. Many complain the holiday-makers’ noisy, drunken antics, the traffic chaos and rubbish they drop everywhere is making their lives a misery
BOURNEMOUTH: Crowds, rubbish, traffic and drunken revellers were the main gripes cited by locals. The road chaos is exacerbated by the fleets of tour buses parked up on the roadside at the resort
BOURNEMOUTH: And as temperatures rose and hoards of people ventured to the beach, most of those who live in the Dorset city choose to stay at home and avoid the ‘dreaded three days of carnage’
‘It’s utter carnage. You can’t drive anywhere because the roads are choked with traffic and if you walk down the beach, where are you going to sit? It’s absolutely packed.’
‘The restaurants are all fully-booked, so there’s no chance of a table and the pubs are packed. They come down here and get off their heads for three days. I stay indoors and wait til Tuesday before I head into town again.’
Crowds, rubbish, traffic and drunken revellers were the main gripes cited by locals. The road chaos is exacerbated by the fleets of tour buses parked up on the roadside at the resort.
Luke Jones-Dowling is just one of the many local people yearning for change.
‘The town centre has become a no-go zone for us locals. The traffic has increased big time and it’s getting worse every weekend through the summer’, he said.
‘Cars flood the town and buses full of tourists park anywhere they can. The result is gridlock.’
BOURNEMOUTH: Janine Davis, 52, has lived in Bournemouth her whole life. She said: ‘People can’t deal with this influx of tourism. Our rent is rising and we can’t even enjoy the area we want to stay in’
BOURNEMOUTH: Nadia Rossi (pictured with husband Marco) is fed up with the mess tourists leave on her town’s streets. She said: ‘I recognise that economically, Bournemouth needs tourism, but we also need people who come here to be respectful
BOURNEMOUTH: While the resort’s iconic pier mainly relies on income from tourists, the town is struggling, and boarded-up shops have seen a massive increase in Bournemouth’s main streets
Mr Jones-Dowling, who is in his 20s, said the local council needs to offer more parking – and charge less for it. A three-hour stay at the main BIC Bournemouth International Centre) car park costs £10.
He said: ‘It’s unaffordable for locals and if you try and park on the streets, there are so many restrictions to parking you have to walk miles from your car to get into town.’
While the resort’s iconic pier mainly relies on income from tourists, the town is struggling, and many in the community are frustrated at the council’s apparent lack of action to help them.
Boarded-up shops have seen a massive increase in Bournemouth’s main streets, with many sleeping rough and rubbish piled up on almost every street corner.
Employee Grace Stowe, 18, said: ‘Sometimes when the weather is bad it is really quiet but we’ll still have lots of staff on duty. Then we’ll have a mini-heatwave and we’ll suddenly need to call in extra people to work to deal with queues out the door.’
Another local, 59 year old Nadia Rossi is fed up with the mess tourists leave on her town’s streets.
OXFORD: Speaking about Oxford, one pensioner said: ‘There are so many tourists here but what do you expect? If we didn’t have the visitors flooding in we’d be worried.’
OXFORD: Tourists visiting the famous university city also had a lot of love for Oxford
She said: ‘I recognise that economically, Bournemouth needs tourism, but we also need people who come here to be respectful and we need the council to make sure it’s tidy when they leave a mess.’
Janine Davis, 52, has lived in Bournemouth her whole life. She said: ‘People can’t deal with this influx of tourism. Our rent is rising and we can’t even enjoy the area we want to stay in.’
However, in some tourists hotspots the antipathy towards visitors is not as harsh. Residents of Oxford, which is visited by seven million people a year, have little issue with tourism in the town.
One pensioner said: ‘There are so many tourists here but what do you expect? If we didn’t have the visitors flooding in we’d be worried.’
Resident Cristian Stan, said: ‘I have lived here for nine years and, wow, it is a great city! I meet people from all nationalities, living here, working and visiting.’
The property manager, 35, hailing from the Romanian capital Bucharest, said: ‘It is a magical city, the most beautiful in the UK, with its history and landscape and the centre is always busy and full of visitors.’
OXFORD: Resident Cristian Stan, said: ‘I have lived here for nine years and, wow, it is a great city! I meet people from all nationalities, living here, working and visiting’
Tourists visiting the famous university city also had a lot of love for the area.
Portuguese couple Domingos and Raquel Vasconcelos, who live near Bath, Somerset , were visiting Oxford with daughter Lara Fonsela, 20, and all agreed it was ‘the place to be on a holiday weekend.’
Mr Vasconcelos said: ‘We love visiting the city for its architecture and vibe.’
Other tourism hotspots for day trippers in Britain include Startford-upon-Avon – the birthplace of Shakespeare. As well as St Albans in Hertfordshire, Downham in Lancashire and Margate in Kent.
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