Row breaks out over planned beauty spot car park

A row has broken out over proposals for a new car park in the Lake District.

Mike Anderton has applied for planning permission to build a 150-vehicle car park in Ullock Moss near Cat Bells, a fell overlooking Derwentwater and the town of Keswick.

He said the area had a "well documented" parking problem but opponents Friends of the Lake District (FLD) said the scheme would "undermine" the area's sustainability aims.

The Lake District National Park Authority (LDNPA) said it would decide on the application "in due course".

Mr Anderton said his team had come up with a "well thought-out plan" for the car park with screening, trees and a "biodiversity net gain".

He said there was "literally nowhere to park throughout the whole valley" with visitors resorting to stopping on roadsides and damaging verges.

"The current methods don't work," he said, adding: "Nobody else has put forward anything else."

FLD's Lorayne Wall said alternatives had been suggested but not been "fully explored".

She said: "Building more car parks every time there is an increase in car numbers totally undermines any efforts or vision of a sustainable means of getting visitors to and around the park."

Ms Wall said the LDNPA should improve bus routes and confine the creation of any car parks to the town of Keswick.

She also said it was important to better advertise the fact the national park could be explored using public transport.

Similar car park plans were previously rejected but Mr Anderson said measures implemented since then, such as the addition of more double yellow lines, had failed.

Follow BBC Cumbria on X, Facebook, Nextdoor and Instagram. Send your story ideas to [email protected].