Cleveland Police said the officer concerned received “suitable advice” from a superior after stopping off at Seabreeze in Lobster Road, Redcar, during his meal break, but the incident did not meet the threshold for disciplinary proceedings.
It said all its officers were reminded that they should not park police vehicles on double yellow lines “unless for a lawful policing purpose, or in exceptional circumstances”.
Resident Jo Haigh, who lives in nearby Queen Street, said she feared “someone could be killed or injured” due to sight lines regularly being blocked by cars parking on double yellow lines directly outside the takeaway and on the opposite side of the road.
Redcar and Cleveland Council said it was aware of the problem and planned more enforcement patrols, and was exploring options for a longer-term solution to the highway issues.
Bollards were previously placed close to the junction of Queen Street and Lobster Road by the local authority to deter cars from mounting the pavement, which also pointed out there was parking nearby.
Miss Haigh told the Local Democracy Reporting Service (LDRS) it was “absolutely just laziness” on the part of offending motorists.
She described an “ongoing battle” with cars blocking the view and making it difficult to exit Queen Street safely.
Miss Haigh said there had been several near misses, one recently involving her daughter as she drove out of Queen Street.
She said: “Unable to see she edged out, but a car was coming down the middle of the road.
“She had to [do an] emergency brake. “Her view was blocked by several cars and vans.
“For children or elderly crossing that road is extremely dangerous, but so is driving out of our street safely.”
Miss Haigh said she had made several complaints to the council, but had been unhappy with the response as “all I get back is lip service and platitudes”.
She added: “The paid car parks are only a couple of quid so I don’t get why some people think it’s okay to park on double yellow lines or residents’ only streets.
“More frustrating is the lack of resources for the council parking wardens.”
She confirmed she had complained to police after the incident last month involving the patrol car.
Miss Haigh said: “They were in the queue waiting for fish and chips.
“I received an apology via e-mail and was told the officer would be spoken to.”
Coatham ward councillor Carl Quartermain said Seabreeze was a successful business and the problem of illegal, dangerous parking was at its worst during the summer when the town receives most visitors.
He said: “We did put bollards on the corner and I’m aware of the issues which have been there for quite some time.
“We do have enforcement down there, but we also have to direct our resources to where they are needed.
“We are limited by the amount of staff we have got.
“But anytime a complaint comes in to me, I always get straight on to enforcement and ask them to go have a look.”
Cllr Quartermain said the council had considered replacing some residential parking and converting it to a limited waiting bay, along with the potential for more bollards on Lobster Road.
He said: “We have to be realistic, we don’t want to push problems elsewhere and whatever we do will require enforcement as well.”
A spokesman for the council said: “Road safety must always be the priority and our officers will not hesitate to take legal action against motorists who break the law by parking on double yellow lines.
“Plans are in place to patrol this area more often and bollards have been placed close to the junction. “Our officers have also met with the owners of the fish and chip shop and will continue to engage with residents in the area including those who have raised specific concerns.
“The council is also exploring options to improve the situation in the longer term.
“We remind motorists that there are parking bays available for customers to use which are located opposite the fish and chip shop on Queen Street which allow for two hours free parking.”
In its statement, Cleveland Police said: “All our officers are reminded they should not park police vehicles on double yellow lines unless for a lawful policing purpose or in exceptional circumstances.
“Following enquiries into the circumstances of this incident, it was deemed suitable for service recovery rather than formal disciplinary action and it was therefore dealt with by the resolution team as this incident does not meet the threshold under the complaint and misconduct regulations for misconduct proceedings.
“The officer involved admitted to parking on double yellow lines for a short period of time during a brief meal break. “He was given feedback and suitable advice from his supervising officer, which he completely accepted.
“The complainant has been updated and has not requested it to be formally recorded, therefore the case has been closed.”
At the scene When the LDRS visited the area on a sunny Sunday afternoon, a queue outside the chippy snaked along the pavement and several stationary cars were spotted on double yellow lines over the course of about half-an-hour, some with engines still running. Some contained a single driver, others were populated with entire families.
A number of children were in the vicinity with pedestrians having to negotiate around vehicles on both sides of the road in order to trickily cross Lobster Road near to the takeaway.
Free parking is limited immediately nearby, although two-paid for car parks off Majuba Road are just a short walking distance away.
Nicola Atkinson, who owns and manages Seabreeze with her partner Kevin Austick, said: “Thankfully in all the years we have been here there has never been a serious accident to my knowledge, but that is not to say there won’t be because the risk is there.
“The parking is an age-old problem and we have got together with the council before on it and they are trying.
“We have put extra staff on, which comes at a cost, to be able to serve people faster so they are not inclined to park on double yellow lines for any length of time, but you can’t win with some people.
“We are mindful and customers have to be mindful of where they are parking, we have signs in the window to ask people to please park responsibly.”
Referring to the bollards in place, she said: “It is not stopping them from parking, they are just parking on the road instead of partly on the pavement, so they are more of a hindrance.
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“The council thought they were doing right, but customers are just being more irresponsible and parking further into the road to avoid the bollards.
“These people have no sense, we go out and tell them.”
Ms Atkinson said she had seen motorists issued with parking charge notices and council officers patrolled frequently.
She said: “I know that because they [motorists] come in here giving us a mouthful and we are like ‘It’s not our fault, you should have found somewhere you can [legally] park.”