Fed-up Bibury resident shares reality of 'idyllic village' that's 'more like a car park'

Summary

There are concerns measures aimed at easing the traffic woes caused by the sheer number of tourists who flock to Bibury are not working as coaches “park where they want” and cars are left “abandoned”. The Cotswold village, with its picturesque Arlington Row, is hugely popular with visitors to the point where it suffers from severe overtourism.

Details

Gloucestershire County Council (GCC) had set up a trial drop-off point for coaches to help ease traffic congestion. But residents say some coach firms are ignoring it and parking “where they want” to drop off visitors. Kris Watts, who moved to Bibury ten years ago, said the situation has gotten worse and worse.

She filmed what the situation was like in the village last Friday (August 21) showing an Excelsior coach not using the drop-off point, fuming in the video: “This has got to stop”. “The coach was just parked up on the left hand side,” she said. “You couldn’t see what was coming from the Swan side of the bridge.

“When we eventually got past it all, the passengers were walking across the road bridge. “You just think, why? The coach bays the other side were empty.

“They just don’t take any notice. They tend to park where they want.” The video then went on to show another bottleneck where a van had parked at the roadside, which she described as being “abandoned so they can get out and have a look”. She believes Bibury’s problems have been exacerbated by misleading social media posts which show the village as idyllic and free of traffic.

“We moved here ten years ago and we knew it was a tourist village but since Covid it has just got worse and worse and worse,” she said. “We had the coaches but not nearly as bad as what it is now. I think it’s to do with influencers.

“People are posting reels showing you an idyllic traffic-free village and then when you get here it’s absolutely rammed.” Excelsior Coaches has been approached for comment. Bibury Parish Council chairman Craig Chapman believes a weight restriction on the bridge is needed to solve the problem caused by coaches.

“While the removal of the coach parking bays by the Swan Bridge was necessary, due to the safety issues and disruption caused as coaches reversed in, the jury is still out as to whether the experimental drop-off bays are the solution,” he said.

Report source: Gloucestershire Live