The BPA Ltd. Doesn't Even Know What Side Of The Road We Drive On

trisontana

Take a look at this heap of garbage published by the BPA Ltd. :-

http://www.knowyourparkingrights.org/

Notice something strange about which side of the road the cars are traveling on? It looks as though that webpage was designed by a seven year old who has copied the images from an American website.

Coupon-mad

It's like one of those Duplo mats that toddlers play with isn't it?!

The sneaky background to this 'campaign' was explained to the BPA AOS Board at a meeting in early 2014 (where the minutes are in the public domain already under FOI). Hilarious that they could not even decide on the acronym (KNY or KYR?!):


PR and Publicity Campaign: Know Your Rights - Update for AOS Board
Following a meeting with the PR Office on 2 April to discuss suggested activity for 2014/2015, it has been agreed that the campaign will focus solely on the Know Your Rights (KNY) campaign in financial year 2014/2015. This proposal was confirmed at the AOS Board meeting on 10th April. The Board had previously signified their intention for the BPA to proceed with delivering the campaign following an online survey of Board members.

Campaign objectives
. Establish AOS members as trusted operators
. Raise the profile of the AOS including POPLA
. Position the BPA as the leading Accredited Trade Association for the parking industry
. Increase awareness and visibility of AOS members amongst key target audiences - media, Parliamentarians and other local Partners
. Educate target audiences on their rights in relation to parking and how/ why parking is managed
. Align the campaign with the emerging 2014/15 BPA Master Plans, and the BPA's proposals to enhance the activities of the Parking Forum and an increase in political engagement and awareness of how and why parking is managed.

Key elements of the campaign
Website
The BPA will use its existing web platform to host a dedicated online campaign site which will carry specific branding related to the campaign. The PR Office will advise on positioning, key messages, userjourney and content and with the BPA to gain third party endorsement from an established partner such as Which? that will add credibility to the campaign

Research
The PR Office will organise an omnibus survey to be conducted using a research agency to investigate what people think their parking rights are and what they find most confusing / frustrating.
Questions will be designed to be PR-focused / media-friendly. To supplement the omnibus research, the PR Office will undertake desk
research looking at facts and figures that are currently in the public domain highlighting the issues that arise from consumers not knowing their parking rights;

Media and public affairs engagement
. Press releases
. Photo calls arranged with AOS members, others and local MPs
. Creation and delivery of template packs for MPs and their staff to use as a resource in their offices and at their surgeries when constituents raise parking concerns
. The BPA'S Parking Forums on tour in the devolved administrations for legislators to collect the information packs and be seen to be fighting for motorists' rights
. Engaging relevant stakeholders to get the KYR information placed onto the gov.uk website in the 'Blue badge, parking, local travel and the environment' section.



So they want their childish drivel here!

https://www.gov.uk/browse/driving/blue-badge-parking

Good luck with that...and they want Which? or others 'on board' to add credibility to these 'trusted operators' like ANPR Ltd! Come to think of it, the website looks like an ANPR Ltd sign...

Dack

It's actually better than that

They've 'borrowed' the pictures from the game "Play and Build City Pro" - https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/play-build-city-pro/id785436853?mt=8

If you scroll along to the last picture you'll see what I mean.

But they at least changed the text from "rest area" to "parking" and removed the American police car - but left the shadow under the sign.

Coupon-mad

Now that is funny! A campaign to try to make them more credible but based on a kids' game: 'play and build'!

Hahahahahaha!

HO87

But that is the idea. Dumb it all down to a single issue - parking. This is followed in the guide where private and statutorily-based parking are thoroughly mixed together.

A deliberate and very cynical move but then this is not about informing the public but in moulding their view.

And they still left the American black & white's in view.

Have they bought the rights to the images from Apple or whomever?

Coupon-mad

Pranky has blogged:

http://parking-prankster.blogspot.co.uk/2014/11/open-letter-to-oliver-morley-regarding.html

'I would like to complain about the website http://www.knowyourparkingrights.org/.

This appears to be a thinly veiled propaganda exercise on behalf of the British Parking Association Limited, and does not correctly state motorist's parking rights at all.'

Quite right.

And the AOS minutes I reproduced above, prove it was indeed a propaganda exercise dreamt up by their PR people, no doubt to justify their (PR) existence.

HO87

I see that the school car park, pictured above the "Parking research and knowledge" section carries a Park Mark poster.

Its pleasing to see that the car park is free of obvious graffiti and damage - especially as it is so close to a school. However, the local ne'er-do-wells would have free and unfettered access at all hours as there are no barriers, no fences, no walls nor an attendant. More concerning is the fact that aside from the complete absence of boundary protection there is no lighting or CCTV coverage.

At night the trees, at the road edge (together with the Park Mark sign itself), would create large areas of shadow in which those yobboes could congregate and intimidate car park users and do who knows what, to parked vehicles.

One has to wonder how this car park ever achieved the Park Mark standard? Perhaps the car park was awarded it simply as a commercial decision so the BPA could push another of its brands? Perhaps it was because one of the BPA hierachy sits on the board of governors at the school or perhaps its because its Jackonory - like the guide itself?

bazster

What a bunch of utter cowboys.

The_Slithy_Tove

Coupon-mad wrote: »

Pranky has blogged:

http://parking-prankster.blogspot.co.uk/2014/11/open-letter-to-oliver-morley-regarding.html

'I would like to complain about the website http://www.knowyourparkingrights.org/.

But what good's that going to do? There is no claim that it's anything to do with the government or DVLA, so they'll simply say, "it's got nothing to do with us". An organisation has simply bought a domain name and plastered it with their own agenda. There are thousands of similar sites all over the web. It's not like this page comes up on a Google or other search (though I guess it depends on what you search for, and whether BPA have done anything towards getting the Page Ranking of the site any higher).

trisontana

This "campaign" also features in the latest BPA Ltd's Monday Musing blog:-

http://www.britishparking.co.uk/Blog/monday-musing-its-right-that-motorists-know-their-parking-responsibilities/742

Feel free to leave your comments.

The_Slithy_Tove

Maybe I should take back what I said about being nothing to do with the government:

The information service is launched this week with a special event sponsored by Shadow Roads Minister Richard Burden MP at the House of Commons and BPA President Ashley Bijster will officially launch the campaign attended by key stakeholders as well as Under-Secretary of State for Transport Robert Goodwill and Under-Secretary of State for the Department for Communities and Local Government, Penny Mourdant.

If those MPs really are sponsoring (i.e. endorsing) the BPA propaganda, then they surely deserve serious rebuke, and a very full inbox of angry letters. Shame on them.