10-12-2013 9:14 AM - edited 10-12-2013 9:17 AM
Now between daughter and myself there is a very busy, very narrow local high street. Shops, mostly charity and takeaway either side and fairly dilapidated. Driving along it is difficult all week with delivery lorries, parked cars, lemmings(previously known as pedestrians). Buses have been diverted off so they only run one way down it, which really helps(unless you want to catch the bus!). Most of one side is double yellows, the other limited waiting. I have never seen a traffic warden in the last year or so and judging by the parking habits there hasn't been one either(it is not an area strangers tend to pass through but a fairly neglected little no account backwater).
Forward to last Sunday at approximately 4.30 when we drove through at 30. 4 parked cars, subway and nowhere else open. However we did make a confirmed visual sighting of the lesser spotted traffic warden. In fact 3 of them happily ticketing the 3 illegally parked cars.
Now don't get me wrong, they were parked illegally but they were NOT obstructing traffic flow, mainly because there wasn't one. they weren't obstructing pedestrians - there weren't any of those either except the traffic wardens. They were bringing at least some trade to the few places open(and boy do they need it). So why, just a few weeks before christmas book people who were actually doing no harm to anybody? I find it mean, unkind and vindictive. Especially as they cannot be bothered to patrol said high street weekdays when, to be honest, they would be welcomed by car drivers and pedestrians alike.
Anybody else find it rather distasteful? Discuss - I am off up the shops.
10-12-2013 10:49 AM
i'd email the local council ask them why they chose that day instead of the week days
10-12-2013 11:16 AM
and why there were three of them in the same place?
10-12-2013 11:32 AM - edited 10-12-2013 11:33 AM
Especially as it's not a rough area.
10-12-2013 9:51 PM
Our parking bods are employed by the local council and sometimes you see them but the majority of the time you don't. I did see one a couple of weeks back as I was driving off from a disabled space. I made a point of leaving the badges on the dashboard until I'd moved off. If looks could have killed, I wouldn't be posting this now.
11-12-2013 8:01 AM
Of course it's distasteful but I'm not at all surprised the cars were booked. Traffic Wardens aren't social commentators or thinkers about how it might impact on struggling small businesses, they are jobsworths. It's a source of revenue for the Councils so they have to keep their quotas up... the fact that they aren't around - or seen to be around on weekdays - means they are probably in areas where you can't see them.
I got a ticket a couple of weeks back for overstaying a half hour parking bay for 3 minutes... there is no justice!
11-12-2013 8:51 AM
we get them in 2 and 3's when they are training new people
the last but one new one had 5 of us neighbours pointing out which were the cars that belonged here
its the people who park badly i wish they'd ticket
along with those with a wide wheelbase 4x4s seem not to be able to park within the designated bays, and all it takes are 2 badly parked to stop the buses and fire engines getting by quickly, and then we get the horrid diesel fumes in the hallway 😞
11-12-2013 9:06 AM
All ours are generally in the City centre booking those people whose cars are not parked within the bays. They patrol regularly and to be honest are useful when it is busy. Bit like the car park ones. What I object to is the mindless booking of people in empty streets or car parks when they are not obstructing traffic flow and when a slight overstay is not stopping anybody else from parking.
Since our council has just put parking up and extended paid parking into the evenings to cover their increased expenditure on parking enforcement one really has to wonder at the insanity of it all. Even when our wardens were on strike most people paid until the meters were full(the empty meter man was also on strike). Parking to obstruct the carriageway is a traffic offence - let the police deal with that, stop enforcing parking regs, empty meters regularly and i'll bet most councils would make more money..