Police have issued a stern warning to Instagrammers at Britain’s busiest mountain – threatening to tow away their cars if they are not parked properly.
Officers will now be patrolling the Eryri National Park area in Snowdon to enforce a zero tolerance approach to vehicles left on the sides of narrow carriageways.
Gwynedd Council says it expects an increase of visitors planning an Easter hike over the long bank holiday weekend.
Previously, ambulances, police, and mountain rescue teams have reportedly been unable to access key routes due to poorly parked cars.
Gerwyn Jones, assistant head of environment at the council, said: ‘It is extremely important that our roads are clear to allow the emergency services to be able to do their job and to ensure the flow of traffic.
‘We ask motorists to park sensibly and respect the parking restrictions and keep the roads unobstructed and safe.
‘If necessary, police and council officers will use their powers to take appropriate action to remove illegally parked vehicles in the interests of public safety.’
Earlier this year, hordes of visitors flocked to Snowdonia in a bid to snap the picturesque winter wonderland landscape to share with others online.
But many ignored the parking warning issued by police who had begged them not to leave their cars on the side of the icy mountain road.
North Wales Police warned that by doing so, motorists were putting others at risk of ‘serious’ personal injury and ‘pushing them into the paths of oncoming vehicles’.
The issue of irresponsible mountain parking previously reared its head in 2023 – also at the start of the Easter weekend.
North Wales Police said 29 vehicles parked near Llyn Ogwen – and another nine in Pen y Pass at the bottom of Snowdon – were removed on Good Friday.
Videos on social media captured the scale of the parking chaos, with dozens of vehicles slapped with fines.
Meanwhile, further images shared online appeared to show that motorists had found more space for parking by driving through gaps in the wall.
One user shared an image of a part-destroyed wall with several cars parked on grassland behind it.
Snowdonia is the largest National Park in Wales, attracting four million visitors every year, with hundreds flocking there for the Bank Holiday.
It is not just parking that has proved a sore spot for park rangers: Instagrammers have previously been criticised for posting selfies of themselves enjoying beauty spots.
Staff voiced concerns that the images were drawing in an unmanageable number of visitors and damaging the landscape.
Mountain rescue teams at the time said they were facing record numbers of callouts to the 3,50ft high peak – that were placing an ‘increasingly significant’ strain on their volunteers.
Commenting on this year’s police warning, Angela Jones, of the National Park, said: ‘We really want everyone to enjoy all that Eryri has to offer over the Easter period, but it is important that people do so in safe and responsible ways.
‘We have already seen more calls than ever to mountain rescue teams operating in Eryri this year, and some of the teams deal with several incidents on the same day.
‘To reduce the pressure on these volunteers, people need to realise the nature of the landscapes, the mountains can be unsafe areas without planning in advance.
‘Visitors should ensure they are thoroughly prepared and that they have the right equipment for each landscape, and enough food and water.’
