A ‘fiasco’ over drivers having their cars lifted by workers and then being hit with fines in Earley has gone viral.

Blackthorn Close in Earley received worldwide attention when contractors were spotted lifting people’s cars so that double yellow lines could be painted underneath them.

The cars that were lifted were subsequently hit with fines for being parked on double yellow lines.

This led to uproar from neighbours who asked councillor Shirley Boyt, who lives nearby, to help them draw attention to the issue.

Reading Chronicle: Evidence of the cars being lifted so that the double yellow lines could be painted in Blackthorn Close, Earley. Credit: Don BarwickEvidence of the cars being lifted so that the double yellow lines could be painted in Blackthorn Close, Earley. Credit: Don Barwick

Cllr Boyt (Labour, Bulmershe and Whitegates) was able to get a positive result for the neighbours in the end and her advocacy for the neighbours hit news sites across the globe.

Reflecting on the story, she said: “You have to see the funny side of it.

“I was hopping mad about it at the time. It went global. I’ve got relatives in Australia who said they saw me in the news.

“It also got picked up in Vietnam, it went everywhere.

“Everyone everywhere they live in the world have got local bureaucracy, and everyone hates local bureaucracy, and that resonated with people, lifting cars up with traffic wardens lurking round the corner giving people tickets.

“It was one of those funny stories, I was famous.

“I had my 15 minutes of fame, all over the world pictures of me pointing at the yellow lines went viral.”

Reading Chronicle: Councillor Shirley Boyt (Labour, Bulmershe & Whitegates) has raised the alarm about the issue in Earley. Credit: James Aldridge, Local Democracy Reporting ServiceCouncillor Shirley Boyt (Labour, Bulmershe & Whitegates) has raised the alarm about the issue in Earley. Credit: James Aldridge, Local Democracy Reporting Service

The story has resurfaced after the Daily Star posted an article on its ‘Weird News’ section, which was shared on Facebook by it and The Daily Mirror, even though the whole incident happened a year ago, on Sunday, November 29, 2021.

The article also incorrectly states the incident occurred in Wokingham.

Blackthorn Close is actually in Earley, a suburb of Reading which falls under Wokingham Borough.

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Luckily, those drivers who were hit with penalty charge notices had them cancelled.

At the time, a Wokingham Borough Council spokesperson said:  “We are sorry for this situation.

“This incident was caused by an unfortunate coincidence that our parking enforcement contractors happened to be in the area shortly after the double yellow lines had been painted.

“We have different contractors for painting the lines and for parking enforcement.”

The spokesperson then encouraged those who were hit with penalty charge notices to challenge the tickets so they could be cancelled, entirely accepting that they had been issued ‘in error’.

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Theorising why the story has resurfaced, cllr Boyt said: “It was shared on Daily Star ‘Brilliantly Bonkers’ which shares the funniest and craziest news.

“They probably just decided to make people laugh by sharing stuff like that story on their Facebook.”

The Daily Mirror and The Daily Star are owned by Reach Plc.