New Disabled Parking bay in road is blocking traffic

[Emily1971]

I would value all opinions on this please.

 

There is a disabled blue badge holder living directly opposite me in a cul de sac. He has always parked on my side of the street, and had applied for a disabled parking bay, but hadn't heard if it was successful.

 

There are grass verges outside the houses opposite, many of which have been concreted over to make a hard standing to park on. The man concerned still has a grass verge, but no hard standing.

 

I got home on Wednesday night, to find a huge disabled parking bay on his side of the road, directly opposite my parking space. My parking space is on the road, but there are no yellow lines or parking restrictions.

 

If I park in my parking space, this blocks the road entirely, and you could only fit a bicycle (at a push) through the space in between. This would stop all traffic flow through the street and as it is a cul de sac there are no alternative routes.

 

I am of course concerned about general traffic and congestion, but also about emergency vehicles and service vehicles (such as refuse collection) being able to get down the road.

 

In order to make it accessible, they would need to prohibit parking in 4 to 6 spaces to allow vehicles to drive around the disabled parking bay, and parking is already tight.

 

I am writing to the council and the fire service to complain. Can you think of any good points I should include in my letter?

 

Thank you.

[nonymouse]

Do you mean 'your parking space' as in an allocated and demarcated space that is only for you to use, or do you mean 'the space on the public road outside your house where you usually park your car'?

[Emily1971]

I mean the place I usually park my car. All the cars park on the side of the road opposite the new disabled parking bay, because most of the other spaces on the other side of the road are off-road hardstandings.

[nonymouse]

I mean the place I usually park my car. All the cars park on the side of the road opposite the new disabled parking bay, because most of the other spaces on the other side of the road are off-road hardstandings.

 

Hmm... In which case I think it's your car that causing the obstruction. You've no right to park your car there, just the habit of doing so.

 

That's not to say you can't challenge the positioning of the disabled space via the council, particularly if you weren't consulted about it.

[Kiki1]

 

I got home on Wednesday night, to find a huge disabled parking bay on his side of the road, directly opposite my parking space.

 

When you say 'huge', is it significantly larger than the vehicle it is supposed to be for ?

 

If so you might be able to have it reduced in dimension, if you can prove the size is excessive, or it likely to be a hazard for emergency vehicles.

[dw190]

You might suggest to the Council to concrete the grass verge and place the Disabled Bay on it so as to assist in keeping the highway clear.

 

Any car parking anywhere on the highway could be given to a ticket for causing an obstruction. In most cases a blind eye is turned but if a complaint is made to the police they sometimes take action and the easiest action is to issue a Fixed Penalty for obstructing the highway.

[gordies]

Hmm... In which case I think it's your car that causing the obstruction. You've no right to park your car there, just the habit of doing so.

 

That's not to say you can't challenge the positioning of the disabled space via the council, particularly if you weren't consulted about it.

 

There is absolutely no need to consult about any disabled bay. It is the council's responsibility to do an assessment for the bay and grant its inception, or not. If the bay has been painted in accordance with the correct law then other road users cannot do anything about it.

[Emily1971]

Hi nonymouse, We weren't consulted about it so I think I have a right to challenge it. I don't technically have a right to the 'space' directly outside my house, but I do have a right to park there if there is a space, because there are no lines restricting parking. Also, there is nowhere else to park - if there is someone else parked there, I struggle to find a space, not only in my road, but the surrounding roads too.

[Emily1971]

Hi Kiwi1, yes it is significantly larger than the car which would want to use it, but disabled spaces are not allocated to a particular person. Anyone with a blue badge can park in it, so the car sizes would vary.

[Emily1971]

Hi dw190, Yes, I think I will do that. It seems like the only sensible alternative. The parking bay has to be directly outside the house of the person who's applied for it, so the grass verge would be the most logical place to put it.

[Kiki1]

Hi Kiwi1, yes it is significantly larger than the car which would want to use it, but disabled spaces are not allocated to a particular person. Anyone with a blue badge can park in it, so the car sizes would vary.

 

How many vehicles could this disabled parking space accomodate then ?

Have you checked how many there are in the cul-de-sac that might require the use of it ?

Have you checked with the council to see if this is specifically just for a/the property near yours ?

Have you checked if the dimensions are legitimate (or even if it is a council painted bay, or somebody with an aerosol ?)

 

Are you near a railway station or some other drop off/commuting point ?

[ericsbrother]

Dont forget, a disabled space can be used by other disabled badge holders. Get all your blue badge holding friends to come and park opposite your house. Wont solve the problem but will make you feel better.

[Desperate Daniella]

I think the best thing you can do is ask very nicely if they could reconsider this and remove the grass verge outside his house and replace it with hard standing for him to park on. You need to get them onside, because otherwise they may well come and paint yellow lines on your side of the road so that no-one will be able to park for about 5/6 car lengths. In the meantime if you do park there you will risk getting a ticket if you are deemed to be causing an obstruction.

 

Is he a nice guy? Maybe you could talk to him, and he could speak to the council and say he'd rather have the hard standing, if that would be okay with him of course.