Clamped car sparks sit-down protest

A MOTORIST was involved in a tense city centre standoff yesterday after his car was clamped and lifted for towing.

Paul Galvin, 23, from Ballyvolane, climbed onto the back of a clamper’s truck and into his Toyota Yaris after it was secured to the bed of the truck at lunchtime in Cork city.

When Mr Galvin refused to get out of the car, clamping staff threatened to call the gardaí.

The standoff, which lasted about 15 minutes, attracted a huge crowd of onlookers, who encouraged Mr Galvin to stick it out.

He eventually climbed down, allowing clampers tow his car away.

Afterwards, he said he decided to stand down when one of the clampers told him the last two people who pulled this type of stunt were fined for Public Order Offences.

Mr Galvin parked his car in a taxi rank outside HMV on Cork’s Patrick Street around 2pm yesterday.

Witnesses said the clampers arrived within seconds and lifted his car onto the back of their truck.

“I parked the car for two minutes and just ran across the road into the bank to drop in a statement. This is crazy. I’m very embarrassed,” Mr Galvin said from the back of the truck.

Onlookers said they backed Mr Galvin’s stance.

“Fair play to him,” Aidan O’Connell said.

“I back him 100%. The clampers are over-doing it in the city.”

Barbara Murphy claimed the clampers had ignored another car that had been parked nearby.

The clampers on the scene declined to comment on the incident.

Control Plus, the company responsible for implementing Cork City Council’s towing and clamping policy, said it was company policy to not comment.

A spokesman for Cork City Council was unavailable for comment.

Cork Business Association (CBA) said recently that clampers were frightening shoppers out of the city.

Recent figures from Cork City Council showed that a motorist is nabbed in the city centre by clampers or a tow truck every two hours.