Minibus Parking issues

Nodding_Donkey

You could try contacting local councils and asking them about coach parking provisions.

scragend

agrinnall wrote: »

I'm not sure that I agree with this - a D1 licence is required, and that stopped being included automatically some time in the 1990s.

Nope, specialboy is correct. No D1 licence is required in the following circumstances :-

https://www.gov.uk/driving-a-minibus

If the minibus is not for ‘hire or reward’

You may be able to drive a minibus with up to 16 passenger seats using your current car driving licence as long as it’s not for ‘hire or reward’ - ie there’s no payment from or on behalf of the passengers.

You got your driving licence after 1 January 1997

You can drive a minibus within the UK as long as the following conditions apply:

• you’re 21 or older
• the minibus is used for social purposes by a non-commercial body
• you’ve had your driving licence for at least 2 years
• you meet the ‘Group 2’ medical standards if you’re over 70 - check with your GP if you’re not sure you meet the standards
• you’re driving on a voluntary basis and the minibus is used for social purposes by a non-commercial body
• the maximum weight of the minibus is not more than 3.5 tonnes (or 4.25 tonnes including specialist equipment for disabled passengers, eg a wheelchair ramp)
• you’re not towing a trailer

Iceweasel

Most mini-buses will fit in a normal parking bay.

All supermarkets have car-parks - I'm sure you will buy something in them before wandering off site. No problem there.

Scottish schools are normally open all through the summer for admin and teaching staff who wish to do individual development/research/preparation work.

Local authority School car parks are usually available for public use outside school hours and very few are gated.

Outside of Edinburgh and Glasgow you should have very few problems.

As for driving licences, see here:

https://www.direct.gov.uk/prod_consum_dg/groups/dg_digitalassets/@dg/@en/@motor/documents/digitalasset/dg_4011275.pdf

Then we have the permit 19 situation.

Then we have the tachograph rules which should not apply to a volunteer with a permit 19 exemption.

A hired minibus will almost certainly be fitted with a tachograph, so in the absence of school signwriting on it, and the passengers not being in school uniform, an inquisitive policeman/traffic cop may wish to check that all is correct.

It's wise to check all the rules that apply to minibuses - don't just assume that because what you are doing is voluntary, or for a good cause, that it is not subject to normal regulations.

Many charities fall foul of these rules.

Youth organizations that travel abroad often fall foul of the rules too as the UK gained several exemptions from EU rules.

I have seen several minibuses with canoe trailers being refused at Calais as the driver had no idea that they needed at least a D1 licence and possibly a tacho too. It's so sad to see their disappointed faces.

Having said all that - enjoy your trip.

physmath

Thanks for the replies everyone. I do in fact have the D1 licence and have driven minibuses full of people several times in the course of the last 26 years, but only from company ground to company ground and I've never parked in a city, hence the question. I've now written to the major city councils to ask about coach parking provision. But this is a pain in the rump because it will likely ruin any spontaneity when it comes time for the trip (hey, let's all pop out to the cinema becomes, hm, how the hell can we legally park at the cinema?). And the 15 seater minibus is 5.6m long which is longer than most city street parking apsces by quite a bit. That effectively makes it inevitable that I'll spill over two spaces and hence my worry about getting ticketed frequently, though we could all just split the cost of a few parking tickets and that would be no big deal.

dacouch

Where are you staying if in hotels do they not have parking?

ohreally

scragend wrote: »

You got your driving licence after 1 January 1997

Whats the situation for licenses which pre-date '97.

Iceweasel

ohreally wrote: »

Whats the situation for licenses which pre-date '97.

See item 2 in the link in post#14

physmath

Yes, the hotels have parking but we want to do things in and around the city and getting about by bus is much more of a pain than driving as I know Glasgow, Edinburgh, Stirling and Aberdeen well enough to drive around from memory. So yes, we could leave it at the hotel but that would almost defeat the point of having a vehicle.

agrinnall

physmath wrote: »

Yes, the hotels have parking but we want to do things in and around the city and getting about by bus is much more of a pain than driving as I know Glasgow, Edinburgh, Stirling and Aberdeen well enough to drive around from memory. So yes, we could leave it at the hotel but that would almost defeat the point of having a vehicle.

If you're going to do things in the city centres then parking is a pain (and expensive) even with an ordinary car, I rarely drive into any of them (other than perhaps Stirling) as they have reasonable to excellent public transport systems that make getting around much easier than driving. For places outside the centre that have their own parking then yes, drive to them, otherwise leave the minibus at the hotel and take the bus/subway/tram (well, not the tram if you're going in the near future) - if your hotels are outside the cities then Edinburgh and Aberdeen certainly have park and ride facilities.

And to add: Edinburgh's metered parking ends at 18:30 in the central controlled zone, 17:30 in the peripheral controlled zone, so evening parking shouldn't be too much of a problem as long as you park somewhere sensible. Aberdeen on the other hand has restrictions in place until 20:00, and is a pain to park anywhere really. Not sure on the rules in Glasgow and Stirling.

agrinnall

scragend wrote: »

You can drive a minibus within the UK as long as the following conditions apply:

• you’re 21 or older
• the minibus is used for social purposes by a non-commercial body
• you’ve had your driving licence for at least 2 years
• you meet the ‘Group 2’ medical standards if you’re over 70 - check with your GP if you’re not sure you meet the standards
• you’re driving on a voluntary basis and the minibus is used for social purposes by a non-commercial body
• the maximum weight of the minibus is not more than 3.5 tonnes (or 4.25 tonnes including specialist equipment for disabled passengers, eg a wheelchair ramp)
• you’re not towing a trailer

Thanks for that, and now we know the OP does have a D1 licence then there shouldn't be an issue.

However, for anyone else who doesn't have one then the weight might possibly be an issue, although you'd hope that a school would buy a minibus that's under the limits. The point that might concerns me is the one I've highlighted - if the OP is employed by the school, then is he a voluntary driver or not?