Travellers take over M6 Toll gateway

A group of travellers has invaded a major gateway to the M6 Toll. The small band of vans gathered on land close to the toll booths and adjacent to the slip roads earlier in the year.

Some residents have complained about the fact that the group has not been moved on. They say that their presence gives visitors to Burntwood, near Lichfield, a bad first impression of the area. But the owners of the land Midland Expressway Ltd maintain that they have moved swiftly and alerted the Highways Agency about the travellers at the site.

"They are in the process of arranging removal of the travellers through the appropriate legal process," explained Midland Expressway's operations manager James Hodson.

And the Highways Agency confirmed that it had begun the legal eviction process, and said a notice would be served for the travellers to vacate the site.

Burntwood town councillor Steve Norman said that he understood the group had been living on the site since Christmas.

The councillor added: "I'm aware of their presence and I've been in constant email contact about what action can be taken."

Councillor Norman did say he had no knowledge of people having any problems as a direct result of the travellers' presence by the M6 Toll. "There may well be problems that appear when they are gone, obviously they have to get rid of all the waste, and it is quite rare for them to vacate a site without leaving any trace."

The councillor said gates had already been erected as a deterrent at a nearby site which once housed the same family. "We've got gates there now that have been fixed and locked, which were put up at great expense."