POLICE have said they are powerless to act over consistent poor parking on a busy Grays street, where residents fear it is on a matter of time before there is a fatality.

Southend Road in Grays plays host to a parade of shops on one side and a petrol service station and two bust convenience stores on the other.

It also features a pedestrian crossing, where people frequently have close shaves with drivers who fail to stop and problems are exacerbated by double parking on the approaches to it.

A local resident spoke to Nub News saying: "We never see any traffic enforcement here and people regularly just pull up, park where they want and visit the shops. See cars double parking or parked on the pavement completely blocking it meaning people have to walk in the road to get round is commonplace.

"It's an accident waiting to happen. And when it happens it may well be fatal. It's just a matter of time but no one seems bothered."

We were told that residents have made frequent complaints to Thurrock Council, asking for more stringent parking enforcement but say the council has said it is a police matter.

However, Essex police told Nub News they cannot act. A statement says: "You will need to contact Thurrock Council for a statement about this, as parking enforcement is their responsibility."

However, the council has declined to respond to Nub News and ward councillors Tom Kelly and Rob Gledhill have also not responded to questions about the issue.

The road is also in part in the ward of Cllr John Kent who told Nub News he had been made aware of the issue by residents and he has asked the council to look at what action can be taken to minimise danger.