No more parking costs....

GreyQueen

Back when I had a car, I used to loathe paying for parking but would do it reluctantly, and at the best-value carpark I could find, even if it meant a substantial hike.

My previous home was in a permit zone, narrow streets of Victorian and Edwardian terraces, double-parking all the way, one way zone, also near the football ground. On match days, that whole quandrant of the city would be full of supporters' cars in every niche and street where it wasn't zoned for permits. The gridlock when they all tried to leave was, and is, appalling. The exhaust fumes were so bad one day they triggered my CO detector.

Of course, having the residential parking permit doesn't guarantee the resident a bit of street to park on, and my housemates were reluctant to take their car out at times as they wouldn't be able to park again anywhere in the zone, never mind somewhere on the same street their home stood on.

I find vandalism appalling but on-street parkers do need to have a degree of sensitivity, as the OP is by parking alongside a park, to the feelings of residents. IMO, at least.

It's got to be human nature to feel that you have more rights over your own street than someone who lives elsewhere but just chooses to park there. Although LiR is absolutely correct about the licensed vehicle being allowed to be parked on the public highway unless there are restrictions.

Ultimately, a lot of homes don't have off-street parking anyway and a lot of people aren't going to be able to afford the extra price which such homes command when shopping for their next home, so we must do the best we can with the resources available.

What will happen is that where commuters or shoppers choose to park in sufficient numbers to annoy residents on a regular basis, those residents will be inclined to lobby for a parking zone. Thus spreading zoned parking ever further out from the retail and commercial sections of town.

There aren't any pat answers, unfortunately; a person looking to park just has to do their best on a day-to-day basis. The authorities and commercial car park operators have to recognise that running a car doesn't mean that you're a cash-cow which can be milked for hefty parking charges. A lot of car owners are hanging on by the skin of their teeth.

wanchai_2

starsandmoon wrote: »

Its not an odd thing to say. Not everyone has a drive. Where I live is inbetween two major football grounds and on match days you couldnt park within 2 miles of where you live so the whole area is residents parking only.

I agree damaging a car is wrong and people dont have a"divine right" to park anywhere. Its called consideration for others.

I'm sorry, I simply do not agree that anyone 'owns' the space outside their house if it's on a public road and there are no parking restrictions.

lostinrates wrote: »

I am afraid while it's not a 'divine' right ( I don't think the gods worry too much about our parking woes;) )car drivers with upto date tax, mot and insurance do indeed abcolutely have the right to park anywhere that has no restictions, and those who think otherwise are mistaken.

That's why those properties with drives that not every one has, or other off road parking, are more expensive than the identical properties without them .

Hear, hear!

amiehall wrote: »

You do not own the road in front of your house. I'm sure if there are parking issues, then the houses are priced accordingly. Your problem has been solved by bringing in a permit zone. I really don't think you should be trying to introduce some 'moral code' into choosing a parking space. I would never block someone's access but other than that, the road is the road. Maybe the solution would be for the residents to campaign for more reasonably priced parking in the centre of towns. I work places sometimes where you can pay £8 for a days parking. Who could afford that everyday?!

Most of the time this makes little difference to residents anyways. By the time they come home from work, all the commuters cars have cleared. If this is a big issue for you, you'll know next time you move that you need to look for somewhere with off-road parking.

I agree 100%.

In my city, there is quite a lot of social housing near, and in, the city centre. The residents first lobbied to have the double yellow lines removed from their streets (in the most central areas). They then stole cones from various sources, which they use to mark the 'territory' outside their houses. They then CHARGE people to park there. Anyone who (perfectly legally) dares to park there in defiance of this runs the risk of having their car damaged.This makes me incredibly angry. But nothing is done about it.

I cycle to work, btw, so this does not directly affect me, but I do get annoyed at criminal behaviour. :mad:

Soapy955

GreyQueen wrote: »

Hi joanie, as someone who works for a local authority, I would urge you to check beforehand that your proposed parking street isn't zoned for residential permit parking.

If it is, you're gonna get a ticket, which isn't very MSE.:(

My city has lots of these zones and anywhere within about 1.5 miles of the centre is zoned like this.

There should be on-street signs to tell you if it is, so have a good look around first. If not sure, quick call to the local authority should clarify.

You might find yourself on the end of some dirty looks from residents if you take up street-space in their road of 8 hours or so per day, though. And persistant parking in residential streets by commuters and shoppers tends to cause residents to lobby the council to be put on permit parking.

An intermediate option which would cost something, but a lot less than £3.50 per day is to see if you can rent a garage from the council, or a garage or parking space from a private householder. HTH.

The OP pays road tax just the same as the residents do. Why on earth would she want to pay for a garage when there's free off-street parking close by?? Living in the street in question doesn't automatically give you priority rights over parking in said street!

gayleygoo

If you're parking in a place that has no restrictions and doesn't cause obstruction to others, then that's great for your pocket! I would say though that if anyone does get annoyed about your parking, for good reason (i.e. if you're parking where a resident usually parks and your parking is an inconvience to them or there's very little parking available to residents there already, then consider moving to another spot, out of courtesy.) Obviously you don't have to, but think about how you'd feel if it were you having to park a half a mile from your home because someone else is parked there the whole day. Here there have been instances in the past where cars unknown to the neighbourhood have been reported to the police as a security alert, in case they blew up or something but sometimes it happened just because they didn't want the car parked there.

I'm glad I don't live near a school though, parking would be a nightmare at certain times! There is a house I pass in the mornings where a man has put up huge orange cones, and four signs to warn people not to park in the space in front of his house. He also sits outside and sends people away if they try to park there :rotfl: I have never seen a car that seems to belong to that house, certainly not at school run times, so not sure why he bothers, perhaps there's a vaild reason but he shouldn't be doing it anyway!

lazer

wanchai wrote: »

I'm sorry, I simply do not agree that anyone 'owns' the space outside their house if it's on a public road and there are no parking restrictions.



Hear, hear!



I agree 100%.

In my city, there is quite a lot of social housing near, and in, the city centre. The residents first lobbied to have the double yellow lines removed from their streets (in the most central areas). They then stole cones from various sources, which they use to mark the 'territory' outside their houses. They then CHARGE people to park there. Anyone who (perfectly legally) dares to park there in defiance of this runs the risk of having their car damaged.This makes me incredibly angry. But nothing is done about it.

I cycle to work, btw, so this does not directly affect me, but I do get annoyed at criminal behaviour. :mad:

This used to affect me - one the rare days that i would bring my car to work I could not get parked (if i needed to leave eary for an appointment, or was coming to work from my parents ec).

However i also lived close to the city and could never get parked outside my own house - but I didn't complain, it went with the territory, if I wanted guaranteed parking, I wouldn't live in a commuter parking area.

One of the houses on a street beside my house (about 50yds from my house), ha a sign up say please do not park here, and proceeded to tell me off if i parked there - even after i explained that i was actually a resident - they seemed to believe the spot outside their house was exclusively for them.

I would not take that spot if there was any other spots available!

People thinking they own the road annoys me!

art_for_arts_sake

Soapy955 wrote: »

The OP pays road tax just the same as the residents do. Why on earth would she want to pay for a garage when there's free off-street parking close by?? Living in the street in question doesn't automatically give you priority rights over parking in said street!

No such thing as road tax, it's vehicle excise duty. It's a source of income for the government as general taxation, and entitles you to nothing.

It's selfish of workers to take up parking spaces even if they aren't anyone's property. It isn't just homemakers and the retired and disabled at home all day that suffer, there's also every chance that access may be required by emergency, construction and maintenance workers.

lostinrates

art_for_arts_sake wrote: »

No such thing as road tax, it's vehicle excise duty. It's a source of income for the government as general taxation, and entitles you to nothing.

It's selfish of workers to take up parking spaces even if they aren't anyone's property. It isn't just homemakers and the retired and disabled at home all day that suffer, there's also every chance that access may be required by emergency, construction and maintenance workers.

Emergency services will double park if needed. They won't waste time circling the block looking for a space

If spaces are so pressured that construction workers and maintenance workers cannot park then it is certainly time to lobby for permits for parking in the area. Then parking spaces can be applied for in advance by these essential people. IME in very busy zones one and two London locations, then essential maintainance people somewhat take the law into their own hands when needed, though I have stood in the road and phoned them and stood in a space before. (also selfish, buit cleared a blockage in the road, so less selfish than any alternative!)

Reserved and permit parking in such away DOES come with a cost as it is a service over and above that which is expected by the free for all that non permit parking offers.

Disabled drivers/blue badge holders are treated differently, rightfully, so their parking needs can be best met in a difficult area.

When we lived in London in a permit zone I could sometimes park in my street, whcih was my preference obviously, if not I found parking in a nearby street. That's the wayu the cookie crumbled. This was when my mobility was extremely impaired and I took it as a price of living where we did. When it became untenable we had to make difficult choices.

lazer

art_for_arts_sake wrote: »

No such thing as road tax, it's vehicle excise duty. It's a source of income for the government as general taxation, and entitles you to nothing.

It's selfish of workers to take up parking spaces even if they aren't anyone's property. It isn't just homemakers and the retired and disabled at home all day that suffer, there's also every chance that access may be required by emergency, construction and maintenance workers.

Access routes should not be blocked, and emergency services have the right to simply stop in the middle of the streets if they can't get parked quickly.

What are the workers meant to do - not park - not go to work?

For low paid workers paying up to £8 a day isn't feasible, as it would simply not pay them to work.

I do not see why it is selfish to park on a public street

art_for_arts_sake

lazer wrote: »

What are the workers meant to do - not park - not go to work?

Cycle, walk, or use public transport? Until people become aware that driving has environmental and social costs obviously I'm preaching to the unconvertible :wall:

I'm not claiming to be holier than thou, I drive and cycle, but at least I try to do so in a way that inconveniences other people as little as possible.

Buellguy

art_for_arts_sake wrote: »

Cycle, walk, or use public transport? Until people become aware that driving has environmental and social costs obviously I'm preaching to the unconvertible :wall:

I'm not claiming to be holier than thou, I drive and cycle, but at least I try to do so in a way that inconveniences other people as little as possible.

Great idea - UNTIL you live somewhere like Lincolnshire (where we used to live) where public transport is non-existant. Cycle - not a chance and walk - not 8 miles each way