Badly Parked Cars!

[snailracer]

Isn't it a bit odd that cars, or anything else, are allowed to park on the road at all? It IS obstruction, no?

What if everyone took their assorted bikes out of their garages/sheds/stairwells and parked them 6 feet out into the road? That would eliminate 2/3 of the total roadspace in Britain.

 

[Tommi]

Isn't it a bit odd that cars, or anything else, are allowed to park on the road at all? It IS obstruction, no?

I just recently had a revelation. Streets in London are actually incredibly wide, it's just the parked cars covering half of it make an effective optical illusion! What I find odd is how London must the largest continuous parking place in the world.

 

[DrSquirrel]

Isn't it a bit odd that cars, or anything else, are allowed to park on the road at all? It IS obstruction, no?

What if everyone took their assorted bikes out of their garages/sheds/stairwells and parked them 6 feet out into the road? That would eliminate 2/3 of the total roadspace in Britain.

Ironically, you cannot leave any "thing" in the road either


Quote...


Leaving ‘things’ on the highway
According to the Highways Act 1980 ( Section 148 and Section 149) it is an offense if ‘a person deposits any thing whatsoever on a highway to the interruption of any user of the highway without lawful authority or excuse‘ and that where the Highway Authority considers that the thing constitutes a danger to users of the highway (including a danger caused by obstructing the view) then they they can remove it without delay and recover the cost of removal from the owner. Also, the Road Traffic Act 1988 (Section 22) says that it is an offense “if a person in charge of a vehicle causes or permits the vehicle or a trailer drawn by it to remain at rest on a road in such a position or in such condition or in such circumstances as to involve a danger of injury to other persons using the road.” These regulations seems to be ignored at present. Incidentally, the Highways Act 1835 (section 72) makes it illegal to ‘tether any horse, ass, mule, swine, or cattle, on any highway’ but unfortunately fails to include the ‘carriage of any description’ in the list so that one isn’t that useful to us!




from http://pedestrianliberation.wordpress.com/the-law-2/

 

[troyka]

i did have some more badly parked car pics from Penzance last week, but seem to have saved them to an unknown location on my phone!

 

[Bicycle]

My particular parking dislikes as follows:

1. Cars parked on busy streets with their offside (driver's) door alongside the kerb.

This means that they pull out again without a clear view of what's coming.

If (as is often the case) they are parked between taller vehicles, all they can do when leaving their parking space is gamble.

There is often no way they'd be able to see an oncoming car, let alone a bicycle.

Very scary and one to look out for.

2. Taller vehicles parked so close to a side-road entrance that an emerging driver or cyclist has little chance of seeing what's coming and a driver on the main road won't know they're there.

Both the above are a hazard whether you're cycling or driving.

Grrrr....

It is really jolly annoying.

There... That's got that off my chest. I think I might have a look at solving the Middle East Peace Process now....

 

[upsidedown]

In our road they park completely on the pavement so kids have to walk in the road to get past. Then when they leave, to save them bumping down the kerbs they drive along the pavements, past peoples gates until they get to a dropped kerb.

The Dudley South police woman said they would do some patrols in the area to stop it, but they did sod all. Actually they did sod all a couple of weeks ago when i called to tell them there was a guy sitting outside the local shop in his Astra drinking a can of Skol Super at 10 in the morning, but that's another story.

 

[troyka]

In our road they park completely on the pavement so kids have to walk in the road to get past. Then when they leave, to save them bumping down the kerbs they drive along the pavements, past peoples gates until they get to a dropped kerb.

The Dudley South police woman said they would do some patrols in the area to stop it, but they did sod all. Actually they did sod all a couple of weeks ago when i called to tell them there was a guy sitting outside the local shop in his Astra drinking a can of Skol Super at 10 in the morning, but that's another story.

in bristol some time back a mountian biker (the stunt kind) rode over cars, parked like this.. i always wished i had such skills to bunny hop onto the bonnet and rid accross...

 

[RRCC]

in bristol some time back a mountian biker (the stunt kind) rode over cars, parked like this.. i always wished i had such skills to bunny hop onto the bonnet and rid accross...

This would be pavement cycling and so illegal - but a push chair, wheel chair or skateboard wouldn't be.

 

[jefmcg]

Due to badly designed roads, especially on new estates, parking on the pavement is the only alternative to let other motorists get by, if I parked on the road outside my house it means that my neighbour opposite cannot park outside his house without completely blocking the road. Both of us park up the kerb to allow cars to continue up the road. I always leave enough room for a buggy/wheelchair to get past.

I had an ambulance knock on my door once asking me to move my car or provide him with details of the other driver, I had parked up the kerb, the car opposite hadn’t, meaning it was an incredibly tight squeeze for a car but impossible for the ambulance to get past.

Seriously, and you think this is ok? What if someone was bleeding, or had a heart attack or stroke? Or what if a fire engine was knocking on doors asking people to move their cars when a fire was raging down the street. If there is not room for an emergency vehicle to pass when two cars are opposite each other, then you and your neighbour must ensure you don't park opposite.

Apparently in our street the fire truck had to stay around a corner and run hoses down the street as cars were illegally parked on every bit of kerb around a t-intersection. This lead to our neighbourhood association campaigning for double yellow lines. (Incidentally, the resident most offended by the double yellow lines owned 4 or 5 vehicles, It was his white van, always parked right on the corner of the main road completely obscuring the view for right turns that drove me to support the yellow lines campaign).

we should do with cars what china did for people wanting children - limit the number of cars per familty to one unless you pay a huge amount to the government for the second.

No, we should (perhaps) do what the Japanese do with parking - you can't own a car unless you have a private parking place for it. OK, I'm in a terrace, and we own a tiny Ka, so it would be a problem for us, but then why am I allowed to store my private property on public land for free?

 

[JamesAC]

Due to badly designed roads, especially on new estates, parking on the pavement is the only alternative to let other motorists get by, if I parked on the road outside my house it means that my neighbour opposite cannot park outside his house without completely blocking the road. Both of us park up the kerb to allow cars to continue up the road. I always leave enough room for a buggy/wheelchair to get past.

I had an ambulance knock on my door once asking me to move my car or provide him with details of the other driver, I had parked up the kerb, the car opposite hadn’t, meaning it was an incredibly tight squeeze for a car but impossible for the ambulance to get past.

What an astonishing attitude!

Pavements are for pedestrians. They are not overspill additional parking facilities for motorists! You have no right to park on the pavement, certainly morally, and in London, legally. Parking on the pavement presents yet more hazards to pedestrians, especially less able ones, and damages the curb and the pavement.

And the road is not yours to park in, either. You have no right to park anywhere on the highway unless it's at a parking meter, and you've paid the appropriate fee; or in a residents' parking zone, and you've got a permit.

Why on earth do motorists, uniquely, assume that the public highway is the correct place to store their property? People don't erect garden sheds, conservatories, cucumber frames on so on in the road - they'd get short shrift if they did.

 

[summerdays]

Apparently in our street the fire truck had to stay around a corner and run hoses down the street as cars were illegally parked on every bit of kerb around a t-intersection. This lead to our neighbourhood association campaigning for double yellow lines.

As far as I can see the council seem to be painting a lot of yellow lines around junctions district by district, because motorists ignore the do not park near a junction advice.

 

[vernon]

What an astonishing attitude!

And the road is not yours to park in, either. You have no right to park anywhere on the highway unless it's at a parking meter, and you've paid the appropriate fee; or in a residents' parking zone, and you've got a permit.

Really?

Where does it state that?

 

[subaqua]

What an astonishing attitude!

Pavements are for pedestrians. They are not overspill additional parking facilities for motorists! You have no right to park on the pavement, certainly morally, and in London, legally. Parking on the pavement presents yet more hazards to pedestrians, especially less able ones, and damages the curb and the pavement.

And the road is not yours to park in, either. You have no right to park anywhere on the highway unless it's at a parking meter, and you've paid the appropriate fee; or in a residents' parking zone, and you've got a permit.

Why on earth do motorists, uniquely, assume that the public highway is the correct place to store their property? People don't erect garden sheds, conservatories, cucumber frames on so on in the road - they'd get short shrift if they did.

unless signs state you are permittted to do so.

Waltham forest has a new policy of widening pavements for cars to park wholly on, rather than 2 wheels only as they used to be allowed to do ( olympic streetscene alledgedly) .

http://www.google.co.uk/imgres?imgu...tx=70&ty=76&page=1&ndsp=27&ved=1t:429,r:8,s:0

shows the sign for the start and end of the permited zones. Ok its from Haringey council but the same sign is used london wide

 

[DrSquirrel]

No, we should (perhaps) do what the Japanese do with parking - you can't own a car unless you have a private parking place for it. OK, I'm in a terrace, and we own a tiny Ka, so it would be a problem for us, but then why am I allowed to store my private property on public land for free?

I have an "Automobile Storage Sticker" in the back of my car

 

[suecsi]

unless signs state you are permittted to do so.

Waltham forest has a new policy of widening pavements for cars to park wholly on, rather than 2 wheels only as they used to be allowed to do ( olympic streetscene alledgedly) .

http://www.google.co...=1t:429,r:8,s:0

shows the sign for the start and end of the permited zones. Ok its from Haringey council but the same sign is used london wide

This is how it is signed down our road - a cul-de-sac near Heathrow (London Borough of Hounslow) in the shape of an L. The theory is, from the signage and the white lines, is to avoid parking around the corner part of the L. However, because there aren't any yellow lines painted around the L corner part, there is a loophole that means later in the evening, when all the 'legal' spaces are gone (it has always been tight for parking when some 2 bed maisonnettes have up to 5 cars!), cars park off the pavement instead, so that they cannot be booked for putting 2 wheels on the kerb. This blocks the road sometimes if too many people do it - you can get a small car in between, but you'd be buggered if the fire brigade or ambulance came down in the night for someone at the bottom of the road. It drives the bin men nuts on Fridays too. The council traffic warden usually makes his morning visit about 07:30am, but can only book those with two wheels on the pavement outside the white lines, or those on the double yellows up near the top at the main road.

The amount of cars per household seems to have increased ridiculously lately - our entire road is 2 bed maisonnettes but there can be up to 6 adults living in some of them, and they all seem to 'need' a car.

Glad to say there is another Brompton rider now .........