# Gardai Parking Restrictions



## ncs (11 May 2007)

Hi -
Attempting to drive into the Porters Gate estate by Clonsilla Station yesterday morning, I was flagged down by a Garda who asked me if I was a resident of the estate. When I explained I was dropping my child at a creche therein, I was brusquely told "I expect to see you coming back out shortly then." Evidently this is an unusually heavyhanded attempt to address the problem of inconsiderate parking in the estate but do the Gardai have powers to arbitrarily prevent public access to entire estates purely for parking reasons ?


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## colm (11 May 2007)

I would presume they have the right to ask the question.
It could probobly be handled a bit better...
I recently had a similar situation when going to the Square in Tallaght one morning. Security there stopping everyone asking where are you going?
eh... Shopping!!!


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## SandraD (11 May 2007)

I didnt think that they could restrict parking on a public road with no yellow lines.......could be wrong
I know that Portersgate have problems with cars parked there all day as there is no car parking at the nearby station which was resulting in people blocked into their driveways etc.
I can understand why they are upset. Its getting the same way in Roselawn now with really heavy traffic and cars parked everywhere. The sooner some kind of parking or feeder buses are arranged for the stations the better


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## Purple (11 May 2007)

SandraD said:


> I didnt think that they could restrict parking on a public road with no yellow lines.......could be wrong


 They can stop you parking anywhere if you are going to cause an obstruction or endanger other road users, even outside your own house. You have no automatic right to park anywhere on any public road. You have the right to enter, pass along and exit it.


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## SandraD (11 May 2007)

Thanks Purple
Have heard lots of people complaining in Portersgate about cars causing obstructions especially if the place is already full up and people are running late for the train. I think abandoning rather than parking was mentioned LOL


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## ncs (11 May 2007)

SandraD said:


> Thanks Purple
> Have heard lots of people complaining in Portersgate about cars causing obstructions especially if the place is already full up and people are running late for the train. I think abandoning rather than parking was mentioned LOL


 
It is pretty bad but if the rules regarding parking on double yellows/obstructions were to be regularly enforced, doubtless general behaviour would improve. It's a little bizarre to consider any housing estate offlimits to "non-residents" though and, in respect of that particular area, pointless because all that happened was that cars started being dumped at my own estate round the corner. Unless they're going to lock down all residential areas within a kilometre of the station, they're wasting their time.


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## Round Tuit (11 May 2007)

I'd heard/read that the bad parking was restricting access to the estate for bin lorries and by extension emergency vehicles - ie fire brigade couldn't fit down the road due to parking. Maybe garda in question had been listening to people tell him what you told him for last hour or so . . . . maybe all those people weren't telling the truth. Not an excuse but y'know. . .


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## Purple (11 May 2007)

Round Tuit said:


> I'd heard/read that the bad parking was restricting access to the estate for bin lorries and by extension emergency vehicles - ie fire brigade couldn't fit down the road due to parking.



AFAIK emergency services can do whatever they like to your vehicle if it is causing an obstruction. A few years back a fire tender couldn’t get into my estate because of cars double-parked at the entrance. They flattened them to get in; it was great! The owners had to pay for the damage themselves.


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## ncs (11 May 2007)

Round Tuit said:


> I'd heard/read that the bad parking was restricting access to the estate for bin lorries and by extension emergency vehicles - ie fire brigade couldn't fit down the road due to parking. Maybe garda in question had been listening to people tell him what you told him for last hour or so . . . . maybe all those people weren't telling the truth. Not an excuse but y'know. . .


 
Arriving soon at Lidl... the 'Dummy Baby/Car Seat' combo. Suits access to multi-occupancy vehicle express lanes and Dublin 15 housing estates alike.


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## ang1170 (11 May 2007)

Similar question to OP, relating to James's hospital.

The road through it is used by buses apart from anything else, so one assumes it's a public road. 

However, on occasion, I've been stopped (by security man) on entering the main gate and asked where I was going.

Same question: can they stop you from passing through?

For those that don't know it, there's a road through the hospital from one entrance to the other.


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## car (11 May 2007)

> I recently had a similar situation when going to the Square in Tallaght one morning. Security there stopping everyone asking where are you going?
> eh... Shopping!!!


Or parking there for the day while you use the luas to go to work.  Thats why the security guards ask.  Ive seen cars clamped in the square regularly since the luas opened.   
The surrounding estates in springfield were supposed to have disc parking for same reasons but I dont think it was ever brought in.


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## Round Tuit (11 May 2007)

ncs said:


> Arriving soon at Lidl... the 'Dummy Baby/Car Seat' combo. Suits access to multi-occupancy vehicle express lanes and Dublin 15 housing estates alike.



Doh! - a child in car would be a good hint to whether you were heading for the creche. Can you tell I'm child-free?
Good point but you get my meaning, maybe every 2nd car that morning was just collecting someone and leaving, just dropping something off at a friends house and leaving etc etc etc


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## colm (11 May 2007)

I still think it is a bit much to be haressed in this manner while going about your daily business.. If long term parking is an issue by all means clamp.


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## IS3218 (11 May 2007)

colm said:


> I still think it is a bit much to be haressed in this manner while going about your daily business.. If long term parking is an issue by all means clamp.


 

Bit of a strong statement I think, Put the shoe on the other foot and then think. Maybe the member lives in the estste and is sick of his neighbours asking him what can be done about the cars being parked there. Anyway he has the right to stop and ask where someone is going, aslo with regard to other posts what's to say you were going to town with the child in toe?

To be fair you don't have the right to park outside your own gate.


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## z108 (11 May 2007)

Im on the side of a fair parking solution for everyone and against anyone being obstructed by careless owners who park in the wrong places but to make this clear ...

If the estate is a public place then why would any member of the public need a reason to go anywhere inside of there in public ?  And how can a guard stop you driving into a public place? Under what powers ?


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## ncs (11 May 2007)

sign said:


> If the estate is a public place then why would any member of the public need a reason to go anywhere inside of there in public ? And how can a guard stop you driving into a public place? Under what powers ?


That's exactly my question - I certainly support the idea of invigilating parking restrictions *where these apply* eg. double yellow lines, driveways or where a special restriction (football match, half marathons or whatever) is in place. But to prevent people parking legally or even simply entering what I assume to be a public road is bizarre. There was one Garda jeep, two officers on foot and a bike - ironically I thought they were there to help with the traffic flow but actually they were contributing to the delay by demanding an explanation from each driver making the turn.


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## z108 (11 May 2007)

I'd like the guards to help reserve some places for me where I live in the city centre. Do you think they might put a team on it 





> one Garda jeep, two officers on foot and a bike


if I ask nicely ?


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## extopia (11 May 2007)

It would be interesting to say to one of these gardaí "I am going into this estate in order to park legally on the public road before taking the train into town" and see what they would say.


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## colm (12 May 2007)

Dont get me wrong I'm all for the residents if there is an issue with parking.
My question is if you are doing nothing wrong why should  you be questioned in this manner.?  After all if you are walking out of a shop after buying something a security guard can't randomally stop you & ask did you rob anything?


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## z108 (12 May 2007)

ncs said:


> I was brusquely told "I expect to see you coming back out shortly then."



I'm very curious to know too whats going on here too. 'brusque' is akin to 'discourteous' so there appears to be a veiled threat in the gardas alleged manner but a threat of what kind of action ?
Its either legal to park in there or its not. The gardas job is to enforce laws, not make them. The guards cant make the laws up as they go along. Thats the role of the legislature. 




extopia said:


> It would be interesting to say to one of these gardaí "I am going into this estate in order to park legally on the public road before taking the train into town" and see what they would say.



Theres something for someone to do and report back on. I guess Im a stirrer  lol


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## liteweight (12 May 2007)

If residents were being locked into their driveways in the morning, they probably complained bitterly and constantly to the Gardai. Who can blame them? I was told that the Gardai no longer have a tow truck so they can't physically move these vehicles! The 'official' clamping company have a tow truck but only available at certain hours of the day and never at night. What if a family has an emergency and comes out of their house to find some idiot has blocked their car in? 

I'd imagine tempers are running very high on this estate at the moment and the Gardai had an earful. However that doesn't explain the attitude. It sounds like the particular Garda was treating everyone as an offender. Maybe we should look at where creches are given planning permission. A busy estate, and certainly a cul de sac, is not an ideal location.


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## Sue Ellen (12 May 2007)

car said:


> Or parking there for the day while you use the luas to go to work. Thats why the security guards ask. Ive seen cars clamped in the square regularly since the luas opened.
> The surrounding estates in springfield were supposed to have disc parking for same reasons but I dont think it was ever brought in.


 
AFAIK there's a 3 hour max parking allowed in the Square hence the clamping. They check reg nos regularly and anyone exceeding the time limit can be clamped. It is definitely in force at week-ends.

Quite a number of areas on the luas route are suffering long stay parking and the problem will probably be addressed as the situation worsens.


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## colm (12 May 2007)

While I can understand the issues in the Square between the Luas & the hospital... Clamping after 3 hours is crazy. There is many a day I have spent more than 3 hours there.


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## tinkerbell (13 May 2007)

What if you do a bit of shopping, go see a film in UCI and maybe a McDonalds?  Thats easily 3+ hours gone?


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## extopia (15 May 2007)

Well the OP is not talking about a private car park such as The Square. The post is about parking legally on a public street.


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## colm (15 May 2007)

But the same question applies....
If you are doing nothing illegal have you not got the right to go about your business without being interrogated?


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## extopia (15 May 2007)

Of course. My point is that as The Square is a private car park they can probably legally enforce a 3-hour rule, whereas this is not generally possible on a public street.


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