Wigan car park still '˜the worst'

Six months after a pledge was made to in-fill vehicle-damaging craters at 'Wigan's worst car park' still nothing has been done.
Deep holes still pepper the siteDeep holes still pepper the site
Deep holes still pepper the site

The Wigan Post was first alerted to the issues on the site of the old Wigan town hall on Riverway and Rodney Street by Bolton visitor Samantha Graham.

Other news: Police fail to respond to Grand Arcade terrorThe land is owned by foreign investors and appears on a new Wigan Council brownfield register as suitable for commercial redevelopment.

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In recent years has been operated by Euro Car Parks and been handy for providing extra vehicle spaces for town visitors.

But the un-asphalted ground has become increasingly pot-holed to the point that cars have been getting stuck and suffering damage to their undercarriages, particularly when the craters are filled with rainwater and unsuspecting drivers don’t realise how deep they are.

In early December the Post received assurances from a Euro Car Parks representative that they were waiting for a delivery of planings (a form of gravel) to fill in the holes, with a view to carrying out a more thorough repair or surfacing at a later date.

But half a year later the situation is as bad as it ever was.

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Ms Graham said: “I can’t believe after all these months that no improvements have been made. Some sort of road stuff has been dumped in a pile nearby but nothing is being done with it.

“It really is the worst car park I have ever seen.”

Another motorist, who did not wish to be identified but was just leaving the site when the Wigan Post caught up with him, said: “This really is an atrocious car park. It’s good to see this piece of wasteland to good use as it’s been standing idle for an annoyingly long time but you would think that a company with Euro Car Parks would have kept it in better nick than this.

“It’s a good job there are plenty of alternatives so I won’t be parking there again until those moon craters are sorted. And for the sake of other drivers’ suspensions and sump tanks, I would suggest everyone else to avoid it as well.”

The Wigan Post approached Euro Car Parks for a comment on any possible upgrade but, at the time of going to press, no response had been received.

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Wigan Council appears powerless to act on the matter, its not being their land anymore.

The site was handed over to private investors years ago after the dangerously unstable former civic buildings had to be demolished.

Several plans have been submitted since to develop the land but none has come to fruition so far.