GARAGE owner Paul Robinson says he is fed up of customers being threatened with parking tickets for using his forecourt.

Double yellow lines run past the Mills and Walker garage in Swan Road, Lydney and although there is a cobblestone kerb, Mr Robinson says Forest Council civil enforcement officers insist it part of the highway.

The Forest Council says the forecourt is a footpath and the restrictions apply to anyone parking there.

Mr Robinson contacted the Review after the latest stand-off last week and says he is now expecting a ticket through the post for a Peugeot 306 courtesy vehicle.

He said: "It's always been a forecourt – I've been here for 28 years, Mr Mills and Mr Walker were here for 40 years before that and Mr Allen was here for 18 before that.

"We've had customers leave rather than face getting a parking ticket so it's having an effect on business.

"I pay rates for the forecourt and you can clearly see where the petrol pumps used to be but they will not have it.

"They could easily find out the information from the council offices in Coleford but they tell me I have to produce the deeds.

"When they started (last week) I told the one guy not to be stupid and he got out his video camera because, he said, I was being abusive.

"I may have raised my voice but I didn't swear.

"The council has got to realise that these people can damage business and there needs to be better training."

A council spokeswoman said: "These incidents have arisen as the road to the front of the business has a double yellow line restriction.

"They are applicable from the centre of the carriageway to the boundary line of the adjacent property, which can include walls, fences, hedges and in this instance, to the rear of the footpath which may or may not be immediately evident as a footpath.

"Any vehicle parking on this 'footpath' area is parking illegally and in contravention of the Traffic Management Act 2004 (as amended) and also causes a hazard to pedestrian users, especially those with a disability, or those users with pushchairs or young children.

 "The garage does have its own car parking spaces and there is a free public car park just down the road from the business. Under the proposals to introduce car parking charges in the council's car parks, this car park will continue to be free."