POLICE were called to a narrow Cirencester street last week when an awkwardly parked car caused a dustbin lorry to get stuck while out on its rounds.

The Ubico truck was unable to make its way through Mount Street on Thursday, April 3 due to a black Ford Mondeo, owned by a local man, being parked half-on and half-off the pavement.

Concerned residents phoned Gloucestershire Police at 8.50am to alert them that the road was now blocked.

Officers then contacted the driver of the lorry to see if he was in need of assistance before arriving at the street after being contacted a second time.

Drivers of the lorry were forced to reverse the vehicle into Chesterton Lane in order to get out the street.

A Mount Street resident, who did not want to be named, told the Standard that incidents like this are becoming more common.

“People are always parking badly and blocking the pavements and the roads. It’s becoming very difficult for dustbin lorries and delivery lorries to get down the road,” she said.

The resident suggested that double-yellow lines or a parking permit scheme could help ease the congestion.

A spokesman for Ubico Ltd, which collects waste across Cirencester on behalf of Cotswold District Council, said the road “poses difficulties” for its vehicles.

“Cars parked inconsiderately can still cause problems and this was the case today. We will continue to review this issue to seek further improvements,” the spokesman said.

The Standard was in Mount Street earlier this week as the dustbin lorry made its weekly visit to the problem area.

“We have to use one of the smaller lorries when we come down here,” said a Ubico worker, who did not want to be identified.

“If we brought one of the bigger ones down here, it would definitely get stuck because the amount of cars parked here.”

Antony Raj, who works at Mounties Convenience Store in Mount Street, said the issue is one that is often raised by customers.

“A lot of people do come in to the shop and moan about the parking on the street. It causes them a lot of problems, some people leave their cars in the road for days,” he said.

Anyone concerned about waste collection in their area should contact Ubico on 0300 300 900.