I AM writing on behalf of residents of Ambury Road who own cars. Since 2006 we have been negotiating with Cambridgeshire County Council s west highways division, Huntingdonshire District Council, Luminus Group etc to try to find a solution to the parking

I AM writing on behalf of residents of Ambury Road who own cars. Since 2006 we have been negotiating with Cambridgeshire County Council's west highways division, Huntingdonshire District Council, Luminus Group etc to try to find a solution to the parking problem outside our houses.

Back in 2006, people were asked to vote on parking permits, as putting double yellow lines both on Ambury Road and Avenue Road was being planned. My neighbours and I voted for parking permits, but we were told most people had not bothered to vote at all.

We then sent in a petition against the double yellow lines but offered an alternative of converting the area behind our houses into a car parking area with lighting and security measures. At the moment it has some council-owned garages, some hard standing and grassed areas and is not being utilised to its full potential.

When we chased it up, we were told that a meeting had been held and the people attending had not been able to agree and had eventually said they did not want a car park there. None of the people who signed the petition were invited to the meeting.

Eventually we were told that the double yellow lines had been postponed indefinitely, and people looked at our proposal for a car parking area, measured up and said there was parking for 13 cars and it would be probably done in 2007-2008.

Nothing was done and, when we queried it, we were told it had been cancelled, with two departments each saying the other was to blame.

We experience a high level of vandalism at the weekend to all our cars parked on the street. To add to our problems the "postponed indefinitely" yellow lines have now been painted and we have parking for only five cars.

As we are so close to the town centre, people use this area as a free car park even if they do not live here. We have to park away from our own homes. We regularly have to park in adjacent streets and the residents there are very angry at us taking parking spaces away from them.

One of our neighbours, in desperation to find a parking space last weekend, did park behind these houses where there is no lighting or security camera. He paid the price. His car was broken into and set alight.

We have attended meetings where councillors, police, west highways division, the anti-social case officer etc have all attended. They have agreed that we have been treated shamefully and promise that something will be done.

Apart from the anti-social case officer, the rest of the people we have dealt with - and they are myriad - have lied, prevaricated and passed the buck with regularity.

This has been going on for two years and we are at the end of our tether, but we will not give up.

GLORIA MCGUIRE

On behalf of residents of Ambury Road

Huntingdon