TRAVELLERS have left the park and ride site in Creekmoor – with council workers to begin a clean-up operation today.

The group, who arrived at the site earlier this month, left on Saturday afternoon.

Half of the travellers vacated the site last week, leaving around 10 caravans and motorhomes still there.

But following their Bank Holiday weekend departure, rubbish was left strewn around the ground, along with gas bottles, refuse bags and broken glass.

The park and ride bus stop has also been damaged with a portable toilet found upended as well.

Creekmoor ward councillor Judy Butt said she and her fellow ward councillors were “extremely disappointed” by the state of the ground.

Council staff secured the site after the group departed on Saturday.

Cllr Butt added: “We’ve worked so hard to ensure the appropriate equipment was provided to prevent this situation.

“The bus stop is smashed and a toilet has been pushed over. We do not have staff to clean this type of mess up and will have to get people in.

“We may just have been unlucky but we’re still very disappointed.

“We will work to ensure that we get appropriate protection there so this can’t happen again.

“We also feel that it was necessary to take the eviction route as the travellers did leave earlier than they would have.

“We will be asking for the policy regarding what we have provided to be reviewed.”

She also called on Secretary of State Eric Pickles to create the powers to ensure councils can share a transit site.

“Residents feel so aggrieved this has happened.

“We are all acting on their behalf.”

Skips and toilets were provided for the group to ‘prevent damage to the environment and reduce the subsequent clean-up costs’, a spokesperson for Borough of Poole said last week.

Officials were due to go to court this week to seek eviction orders against the remaining group, if they failed to leave.

Damage to the boundary is likely to be repaired as soon as possible.

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