Aberfeldy residents are outraged by a former bus driver’s plans to set up a catering van on the site of his garage in the town.
Bus company operator Kenneth Carey, 62, said he has applied for a street trader’s licence so he can sell “sandwiches and decent food like that” to school pupils from the site of his company Caber Coaches at Chapel St Garage in the town.
But at least 10 local people have formally objected to what they call a “burger van” claiming the premises will be operating late into the night on weekends and will create problems with anti-social behaviour.
Mr Carey said: “The kids come out of school and I see them eating chips and that kind of rubbish. I have sourced decent sandwiches and food like that. I want to see kids eating decent stuff.”
He denied that he had any plans to open late at night.
“I can’t be doing with that,” he added.
“I know there have been lots of objections, but I think that is to do with my history and I have a totally different edge on things than I did six years ago.”
Mr Carey was banned from driving for six years at Perth Sheriff Court in 2013 after admitting being drunk while driving 20 children in a minibus.
He said he had already spent £20,000 on his catering van and plans to employ three people if his application is successful, including one to drive the van.
Mr Carey’s application for a street trader’s licence goes in front of the Perth and Kinross licensing committee next week.
Steve Morton from Aberfeldy submitted a written objection.
He wrote: “The proposal is regarding a mobile burger van on site. The worry is that this proposal will result in a lot of people frequenting the burger van, especially after the pubs close and that this would seriously impact on the quality of life for a number of residents.”
“The burger van seems to be going to use gas, stored on site, to cook and there must be some worries regarding this,” he continued.
“There is already plenty of provision for fast food in the town and I cannot see that this new outlet is required.”
Another anonymous objector wrote to Perth and Kinross Council’s head of legal services, saying: “There are no toilet facilities, which will result in customers urinating on the street, or on cars, and while that may seem extreme, it’s a fact if the van is going to be serving late at night.”
