Stopping on zig-zags

caveat_emptor

Does anyone know the law concerning waiting in a queue of traffic on a zig-zag before a zebra crossing. I know it is il;legal to park on a zig-zag but what about waiting?
A number of local .motorists have recieved PCN while waiting in a queue for petrol.

emmajones1976

Wouldnt the queue be to the left of the road, if you are passing through in a queue surely none of this applies - if you were in a road queue on a road with double yellow lines you wouldnt be considered to be parked up.

TadleyBaggie

Is it really a PCN? Who issued it?

Car_54

The regulations say "The driver of a vehicle shall not cause the vehicle or any part of it to stop within the limits of a crossing unless he is prevented from proceeding by circumstances beyond his control or it is necessary for him to stop to avoid injury or damage to persons or property." [The Zebra Pelican etc. Regs 1997, section 18}
I think it very unlikely that a court would regard queuing for petrol as beyond the driver's control.

sheramber

Why the need to drive   right up to the zebra crossing?

 By stopping before the zig zags it allows a pedestrians using the crossing a better view of any traffic overtaking the queue. Similaryl it allows an overtaking motorist a clearer view of anyone on the crossing.

Ebe_Scrooge

^^^ This.  I do remember a long long time ago, in a city far far away .....  Me & my brother were driving through town at night, needed some cash, so I pulled up outside a cashpoint and my bro hopped out to get some.  I was on zig-zags by a zebra crossing, but there was no-one around, and we were going to be 30 seconds if that.  A police car came up behind me, the guy got out and gave me a right dressing-down.  He actually said they turn a blind eye to anyone stopping on the double-yellows about 30 yard further on, if it's obvious people have just stopped to use the cashpoint, but the zig-zags were a definite no-no.  To be fair to the guy, he didn't give me a ticket, just a stern talking-to.  But it just illustrates that zig-zags definitely do seem to be enforced pretty strictly.

Manxman_in_exile

sheramber said:

Why the need to drive   right up to the zebra crossing?

 By stopping before the zig zags it allows a pedestrians using the crossing a better view of any traffic overtaking the queue. Similaryl it allows an overtaking motorist a clearer view of anyone on the crossing.

That's certainly what I'd do but I suppose the OP will say that the drivers concerned must have wanted to avoid being queue-jumped.

(Seems obvious to me that being stationary on zig-zags in a queue for petrol will rightly risk a ticket.  Would anybody query being done if queueing for petrol and stopping in a yellow box?)

Car_54

TadleyBaggie said:

Is it really a PCN? Who issued it?

AFAIK (but I could be out of date) pedestrian crossing offences have not been de-criminalised. So if they received any punishment it would have been at least a fixed penalty of £100 and three points.

Advocado

The zig zags are there to ensure cars approaching the crossing have a clear view of pedestrians and vice versa. 

Quite right those who used it to queue for petrol got tickets. That was endangering people’s safety.

JJ_Egan

I have seen police officers ticket queuing cars for car parks , petrol stations etc over the years .

neilmcl

Car_54 said:

The regulations say "The driver of a vehicle shall not cause the vehicle or any part of it to stop within the limits of a crossing unless he is prevented from proceeding by circumstances beyond his control or it is necessary for him to stop to avoid injury or damage to persons or property." [The Zebra Pelican etc. Regs 1997, section 18}
I think it very unlikely that a court would regard queuing for petrol as beyond the driver's control.

That relates to actually stopping on the crossing itself, rather than the preceding zig zag lines.