ROAD rage is expected to become a thing of the past along three Normanton streets, which all become one-way from today.

For years, Crewe Street, Violet Street and St Giles Road – packed with terraced housing and on-street parking – have been plagued with problems.

Vehicles parked on both sides of the street have left motorists, who are travelling in opposite ways, unable to pass.

Drivers have also been seen racing to get to a space first.

It is hoped a new one-way system will alleviate these problems, which have caused arguments between motorists.

Neighbours had asked their local councillors to find a solution to the issue.

Ward councillor Hardyal Dhindsa said a one-way system was proposed and that he was pleased it had now been implemented by Derby City Council.

Mr Dhindsa said: "There have been many occasions when cars meet in the middle.

"One car can't give way, even if they wanted to.

"Cars are having to reverse back down the street, which has caused arguments.

"Most of the households have one or two cars and there's hardly enough gaps for them to park.

"When there is a gap, drivers have gone head to head and raced down the street to get to it first.

"There is a risk of causing damage to cars."

Mr Dhindsa said various options to solve the problems were considered and that it was clear which one most residents wanted.

He said: "One of the options was to introduce double-yellow lines along parts of the road, which would free up space for cars to pass each other.

"But then that would add to the parking problems.

"One person said making it one-way would increase journey times but the overwhelming majority wanted to introduce a one-way system."

Madhu Haryana, 38, of Crewe Street, said she was pleased at the change.

She said: "It can be almost impossible to get down the street.

"It should have become one way a long time ago."

One person who was not in favour of the move, however, was Prabha Gupta, of Violet Street, who said there were "too many" one-way streets in Derby.

A council spokeswoman said the move followed a public consultation exercise in 2010 when "a high level of public support" was shown for the new system.

She said the changes had also been highlighted as "a priority" by Normanton Neighbourhood Board, which is made up of councillors and community representatives.

Crewe Street can now only be accessed from Middleton Street, while Violet Street traffic also has to travel from Middleton Street towards Upper Dale Road.

Meanwhile, St Giles Road traffic has to travel in the opposite direction, from Upper Dale Road towards Middleton Street.