A POPULAR car park which is used by walkers and dog owners to access Friday Woods is set to remain closed “indefinitely”.

The Colchester woods are owned by the Ministry of Defence and are used by the Army for training drills but is also open to the public.

But bosses at the MoD decided to shut the car park on Bounstead Road last April after a series of anti-social incidents and say littering and dog fouling are also behind the closure.

Some residents have called for a gate to be put in place at the entrance to the car park to prevent vandalism being done overnight, however, that appears to have been ruled out by military bosses.

One resident, Kieran Fitzgerald, has been using the woods for more than 30 years.

Mr Fitzgerald said: “It’s created another problem because people are being forced to park along Bounstead Road, which is a busy road, so it’s putting them in danger.

“Are we going to see similar things happening at other places where people walk their dogs in Colchester?

“If dog fouling is the issue then the answer to that is more bins for dog waste.”

Petitions have been launched online to try to secure the reopening of the car park.

Flytipping, arson attacks on vehicles and even reports of dogging led to the car park, which gives access to Friday Woods, being shut off with steel barrels.

The barrels have since been replaced by concrete barriers to block access to the car park.

A spokesman for the MoD said: “The Bounstead Road car park is indefinitely closed due to numerous serious instances of anti-social behaviour and vandalism.

“Since closing the car park there appears to have been less vandalism and anti-social behaviour.

“However, exercising troops recently reported high levels of litter including many bags of dog excrement.

“The installation of a gate to allow public access during daylight hours has been considered.

“But we do not believe that the costs of buying, installing and operating a gate would be a good use of MoD funds or staff time.

“We continue to monitor the overall situation.”

To sign the petition visit www.getpetition.com/petitions/keep-friday-woods-car-park-open--fit-a-locked-gate.