Tourists visiting the parks of Wales' famous Eryri national park hit out angrily, accusing the Welsh of being "self-righteous" and "biting the hand that feeds", when their cars were towed.
The bitter, angry response came as the national park carried on its well-publicised zero-tolerance policy on dangerous and illegal parking. Authorities in north Wales have been trying to manage the impact amid the national park's soaring popularity.
In an online debate this week, NorthWalesLive reported that many visitors thought the national park was going too far and called for “constructive management” of a problem that is causing animosity between visitors and residents.
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In recent weeks, police have closed a major road in the area to tow away 40 cars that were parked illegally near Eryri. Highway teams were also filmed towing the vehicles away and issuing a number of fixed penalty notices, mostly to vehicles ignoring double yellow lines on the side of a busy Eryri road.
But critics of the national park argued that it needed to put in better provision for parking. "The root cause of the parking issues is not hundreds of insensitive louts being lazy or ignorant - the vast majority are decent people stuck with nowhere to park and poor alternative provision," one blogger wrote.
"It should not be beyond the national park and local authority capability to anticipate peak crowds and make appropriate provision that makes visitors welcome and well-catered for. Instead we are presented with a self-righteous, insular, let's-tow-away-their-cars-and-that'll-show-'em type attitude, which is counterproductive and, most of all, ungenerous. Let's see more constructive and generous proposals rather than this biting of the hand that feeds."
But locals say vehicles causing a hazard should absolutely be removed. "I wouldn’t expect anything else [other than being towed] if I parked up on Manchester ring road and went shopping for the afternoon," one resident said. While another asked: "So people will risk being towed and putting others lives at risk for the sake of £20 per car? Unbelievable!"
Another local resident accused some visitors of a lack of consideration for the communities they visit. “There seems to be a post-Covid attitude of entitlement that they can do what they like, when they like and how they like," she said. "Abuse by some visitors is on the increase - not all, but the numbers are rising."
In recent weeks, an app has been set up to help visitors locate their nearest car parks with free spaces, and there are several park-and-ride sites running from the outskirts of the national park. Shuttle buses are also running continuously to places like Yr Wyddfa and Llyn Ogwen.
Despite these offerings, as we head into the summer holiday when visitor numbers typically peak, there are fears of more issues to come. Snowdon Mountain Railway is set to soon resume its summit services and reopen its long-closed Haford Eryri cafe, which is expected to bring more people to the already-crowded peak of Wales' highest mountain.
And the preference by some visitors to park at the foot of mountains, rather than use park-and-ride facilities, is a challenge facing the park authorities. Walkers complain that, after a tiring day on the mountains, the last thing they want is to "wait an hour for a bus".
However, Eryri National Park believes its park-and-ride offerings and parking rules are manageable. A spokesperson said: "Only a small minority of visitors are not following the guidelines. We are very grateful for everyone’s cooperation in this regard."
They said the transport and parking policy helps "greatly reduce traffic, pollution and noise in the inner area during high season" and will therefore "vastly improve the visitor experience and promote sustainable tourism".
"To ensure the preservation of this remarkable area, it is crucial that visitors adopt sustainable practices and adhere to the guidance provided, especially during peak times as we head in to the busy summer months," the spokesperson added.
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