Snack bar lay-by ban

Roadside snack bars will not be allowed along the A449 near Kidderminster after highways chiefs announced court action to claim back the lay-by.

They want to stop food kiosks setting up in the short layby at Hartlebury after parish councillors' worries about queues of drivers stopping to use them.

The lay-by is only big enough for about three or four cars and not as wide as many along roadsides around Worcestershire.

Because of this people parking partly on the road, create problems for drivers travelling along the dual carriageway from Kidderminster towards Hartlebury.

In May a cafe there became a popular stop for long-distance drivers.

Recently the kiosk and signs on the verges disappeared and officials say court action is being taken to ensure they do not reappear.

Highways Agency spokesman Annie Harris said after parish council concern and their own observations, the agency advised one vendor in October that she should cease trading from the lay-by as it created a hazard to road users.

The lay-by was part of the road network and owned by the Highways Agency.

She added: "We will shortly be applying to a court in order to repossess the land and make the road safer for motorists.This particular place is deemed not to be safe and we are trying to take action.

"As far as the Highways Agency is concerned where there is no room for people to pull in. There is also nowhere safe for people to pull up and where parking is inappropriate then there is a safety issue.

"The lay-bys, as with roads, belong to the Highways Agency and use of this by a vendor creates a hazard to road users. As far as we are aware the vendor has now ceased trading from this layby." Other kiosks would face the same action if they tried to set up there.

By Sue Smith