A DRIVER has hit out at Bury Council after winning a fight to have a parking fine she received at a notorious town centre car park quashed.

Denise Sykes, aged 58, was given a £50 fine by Bury Council after parking in the car park outside TK Maxx in George Street on March 28.

Mrs Sykes, who had travelled from her home in Bacup for an optician’s appointment in Bury, says that after parking up, she bought a ticket from a pay station metres from her car.

But, when she returned and found a penalty charge notice, she says she ‘could not believe it’.

She said: “I don’t go to Bury that often but when I do, I always use the council car park on George Street.

“This particular day, my husband was with me and he has mobility issues. To the right and in front was a pay station and just next to that was a sign asking if you have paid and displayed. I bought a ticket from there and displayed it.

“When I came back, there was a penalty charge notice there. I could not believe it. I found an attendant who told me I had paid at the wrong machine.”

Although she had parked in the council car park, the machine Mrs Sykes had bought a ticket from was linked to the adjacent Angouleme Retail Park car park, also in George Street.

In the past, several drivers have complained about receiving hefty fines after being caught out due to the two car parks being run separately – one by Bury Council and one by Smart Parking.

In 2009, signs were introduced to the car park in an attempt to clear up the confusion, but Mrs Sykes says they are ‘not as clear’ as the council might think.

After deciding to appealing the fine, it was eventually quashed by the Traffic Penalty Tribunal. She now wants to prevent others making the same mistake as her.

“I have never had a parking ticket, or appealed against anything before.

“When I challenged it, I told them there was nothing stopping me going to that pay station. There was nothing to suggest I had paid at the wrong one.

“Until that day, I did not know there were two different agencies running car parks there. This could quite easily be prevented by the council. It is not as clear as they think it is.”

Data obtained via a freedom of information request shows that the council has received more than £103,000 in parking fines at the George Street car park since 2010.

Mrs Sykes added: “They are not going to sort it because they are getting some revenue from it.

“The barriers are clearly not adequate because people have been making the same mistake for eight years.”

A spokesman for Bury Council said: “There are two car parks at this location – a council one, and a private one. Both of these are clearly signed, as are the ticket machines.

“There are metal hooped barriers between the two car parks, to show people where one car park ends and the other begins.

"To reinforce this message, we did at one point install chains linking these hoops. However, physically blocking off movement between the car parks would not be welcome by people wishing to get to the shops, especially by people who are disabled or have prams.

“The number of complaints and parking fines at this site has been steadily dropping in recent years, which is to be welcomed. Drivers are advised to make sure they know what car park they are parked in and to use the correct ticket machine.”