Parking outside house buggy owner annoyed

[annabo]

Arrived home for lunch only to see a handwritten note posted to my address asking me to please not park outside my house as I am blocking someones daughter with her buggy!

The road that I live on everybody parks their cars on the pathways outside their respective houses as there is nowhere else to park. It seems by the tone of the letter that this note was just sent to me and no other residents on the street.

I am soooo annoyed, does anyone have any advice they can give. I understand that legally no one has a right to park outside their house, but surely trying to suggest a resident to move their car and going through any legal action at all (not saying there would be) would have to apply to all residents on the street?!...any help on this would be great, of course they left no forwarding address or name it was signed of 'Thank you, a Granny'..!!!!!!

 

[paddywhacker]

Do you park on the path or the road? Because if it's the path, I can see where she's coming from. Paths are for pedestrians

 

[McCrack]

You correct in saying it is legal to park a vehicle on a public road (current tax disk displayed) but it not legal to park a vehicle on or across a footpath.

And legalities aside I think this person has a point, as would a wheelchair user, as would any person who has to step out onto the road to pass your car obstructing their way.

 

[Allen]

Were you parking illegally on the footpath forcing elderly ladies to put babies in danger by walking on the road in the traffic?

 

[annabo]

Can I have a constructive legal response on this please? and specifically in in relation to all the residence on the road.

 

[DeeFox]

Could this be on a road in a Cork suburb with speedbumps beginning with T? I ask because I got a very similar note left on my car when I parked there - exact same words used. I didn't need to park there so didn't use that area again.

My advice would be to ignore it and continue to park there. The road is for public use. Given that you live there can you make a guess as to who it is? If so, drop the note back in to them with a very polite note saying that they do not have a right to that parking space.

 

[Card]

you can't park on a footpath, or in any way that is likely to be a danger or an obstruction to pedestrians, its covered by the road traffic acts if you have time to go looking for it
I know that it is tolerated in a lot of areas but that doesn't mean that it legal

 

[Smashbox]

A legal answer is that its illegal to park on a footpath. I think the note leaver is correct in asking you, and has every right to report you for this.

 

[annabo]

so they have a right to report all 40 or so residence who park this way on the road and that would apply to all other residence in the town?

 

[Card]

yup!

 

[Smashbox]

It would apply to anyone parking a car on a footpath. Anywhere.

(Post crossed with cards)

 

[annabo]

yeah smashbox I got that from the previous mail..

 

[Cashstrapped]

so they have a right to report all 40 or so residence who park this way on the road and that would apply to all other residence in the town?

Or maybe if everyone done what she asked then she wouldn't feel the need to report it. This is a dreadful problem in our estate too, there is a woman who has a child in a wheelchair who has on numerous occasions been forced to wheel him out on the road because of inconsiderate people who park their cars 'fully' on the path.

 

[Smashbox]

Found the law about this..

Road Traffic (Traffic and Parking) Regulations 1997

36. (1) Save as otherwise provided for in these Regulations and subject to article 5, a vehicle shall not be parked on a public road at a location, in a manner or for a purpose referred to in this article.

(2) A vehicle shall not be parked—

( i ) on a footway, a grass margin or a median strip;

 

[annabo]

Dear Moderator, I believe some people may be getting a bit too angry in this debacle.

 

[sam h]

She may only have written to you as you may have been further in than the rest of the cars (that doesn't make your parking more illegal than theirs!!). I'd reckon it was a neighbour who left in the note as how else whould they have known where you live?

Back in the days of pushing a double buggy & having 3 year old walking beside me, I can fully understand how annoying & dangerous it is to have to navigate between the parked cars, down a high kerb, along a busy road, back up onto the kerb.....it ain't easy.

Legally, it would appear you (and your neighbours) are in the wrong. You should be grateful she didn;t take the legal route herself & call the Gardai to issue you all with tickets....I suspect she was trying to be reasonable!!

 

[extopia]

No parking on the footpaths, please! People who do so really are inconsiderate of their neighbours and other users of the footpaths.

 

[Bronte]

so they have a right to report all 40 or so residence who park this way on the road and that would apply to all other residence in the town?

Did you park on the path or on the road? It is not clear from your posts.

 

[becky]

Did you park on the path or on the road? It is not clear from your posts.

I thought the same first but she says later everyone parks on the footpath. I'm guessing its one of the small streets where the houses were built in a time when people didn't have cars.

 

[AlbacoreA]

Its not just old roads. A lot of new developments estates and apartments were built with insufficient parking and roads too narrow so the developers could squeeze as much profit out of the area as possible and to heck with how it effected the residents in the years to come. Our broken planning process allowed this. Should never have been allowed.

Where I live, new development, is the same. Cars all park with 2 wheels on the pavement. Unless they come around and ticket everyone on a regular basis this won't stop.