Cork’s MacCurtain Street “should be renamed MacParking Street” as a challenge goes out to count illegally parked cars

— Business group says oil from cars “impossible to completely irradiate” has damaged footpaths.

Just weeks after Cork City Council denied that there was a lack of enforcement of illegal parking around the MacCurtain Street bus and public realm project in Cork, councillors are still highlighting the issue, and a Twitter user is challenging others to count how many illegally parked cars they can find at once.

As covered in an article published last month, a Cork City Council spokesperson said: “Cork City Council completely refutes the false accusation that we have not acted to deliver a full parking enforcement service on MacCurtain Street.”

The council added: “The MacCurtain Street Public Transport Improvement Scheme has been the subject of full parking enforcement, in accordance with the parking lines and signs that are in place, since the project and all on-street works were completed.”

Yesterday, on the August Bank Holiday Monday, cars were again illegally parked along the street.

Twitter user Kjell-A Helgeneseth challenged others to see how many cars they could spot. Helgeneseth said: “Based on the lack of enforcement, and general lack of f*cks given by drivers, I suggest renaming MacCurtain Street to MacParking Street. How many illegally parked cars can you spot?”

Helgeneseth added that Twitter limits the video length but said: “I counted 22 cars in that time. There are two more in the longer video, plus the one in the photo on Bridge Street. That’s 25 cars. At €80 per fine, that’s exactly €2000 right there.”

The VQ, a business group representing traders in the area, said it had contracted a street cleaning company to trial a deep clean and sealing of the footpath stone pavers on MacCurtain Street.

On LinkedIn, The VQ posted: “We selected a seven-metre by seven-metre section of pavement outside the iconic Isaac’s restaurant. Unfortunately, the stone has already absorbed vehicle oils, which are impossible to completely irradiate, but a tested chemical was able to draw some of this out.”

Cllr John Maher (Labour), who has been highlighting the issue, also tweeted images of the street yesterday. He said: “Nothing to see here.”