What is the law on parking on a street in a residential area?

The provision officers use to charge vehicles parked in the street is regulation 305(4)(e). If the street is less than 5,5 m wide a person may not park on the street.

;

(4)        No person shall park a vehicle on the roadway of a public road within an urban area—

(a)        within 9 metres of the side from which he or she approaches a pedestrian crossing demarcated by appropriate road traffic signs, unless such parking is permitted by appropriate road traffic signs;

(b)        within 5 metres of any intersection unless such parking is permitted by a road traffic sign;

(c)        upon or over the actuating mechanism of a traffic signal;

(d)        (i)         with the outside of any left‑hand wheel thereof more than 450 millimetres within the roadway; or

(ii)        where the public road concerned is restricted to vehicles moving in one direction and the vehicle is parked on the side of the roadway, with the outside of any right hand wheel thereof more than 450 millimetres within the roadway, unless such parking is permitted by an appropriate road traffic sign; or

(e)        which is less than 5 and a half metres wide unless the public road concerned is restricted to vehicles moving in one direction and such parking is permitted by appropriate road traffic signs.

;

Regards

Alta

;

Alta Swanepoel & Associates

What is the law on parking on a street in a residential area?

What is the law on parking on a street in a residential area?

The provision officers use to charge vehicles parked in the street is regulation 305(4)(e). If the street is less than 5,5 m wide a person may not park on the street.

;

(4)        No person shall park a vehicle on the roadway of a public road within an urban area—

(a)        within 9 metres of the side from which he or she approaches a pedestrian crossing demarcated by appropriate road traffic signs, unless such parking is permitted by appropriate road traffic signs;

(b)        within 5 metres of any intersection unless such parking is permitted by a road traffic sign;

(c)        upon or over the actuating mechanism of a traffic signal;

(d)        (i)         with the outside of any left‑hand wheel thereof more than 450 millimetres within the roadway; or

(ii)        where the public road concerned is restricted to vehicles moving in one direction and the vehicle is parked on the side of the roadway, with the outside of any right hand wheel thereof more than 450 millimetres within the roadway, unless such parking is permitted by an appropriate road traffic sign; or

(e)        which is less than 5 and a half metres wide unless the public road concerned is restricted to vehicles moving in one direction and such parking is permitted by appropriate road traffic signs.

;

Regards

Alta

;

Alta Swanepoel & Associates

What is the law on parking on a street in a residential area?

Another fine mess – parking tickets on private land

Updated – February 21, 2015

Most of us have at some time or an additional returned to our car to find a parking ticket slapped on the windscreen. It’s annoying and it’s pricey, although if we have broken the rules we normally spend up. But what if the ticket is unjustified? What if you are the victim of an more than-enthusiastic attendant, a straightforward mistake or a technical error?

You very first require to discover out no matter whether the parking ticket was issued by the council, the police or a private company such as a supermarket, railway station or retail park. If the name of the police force or council is not on the ticket, then you are most likely on private land.

The distinction is important because police and councils have diverse powers to private automobile park operators. When you park on private land you enter into a sort of contract with the landowner. If you breach the contract, maybe by staying longer than your allocated time, you ought to anticipate a ticket.

Fine detail

Private vehicle park operators can’;t situation a fine or a penalty charge notice. It is also against the law for a private firm to clamp or tow away your car unless they have the legal authority, which ought to be clearly displayed. You have to watch out, even though, as numerous private firms do their best to make their tickets appear far more official, partly in an try to intimidate drivers.

Ok, so you are confident you are parked on private land. Are you also certain that the parking ticket is unfair? It’s no good huffing and puffing with indignation when you have in truth parked in a bay reserved for disabled badge holders. The car park’s terms and circumstances should be visible and if you did not break any of the rules you have each and every appropriate to make a stand.

Sign of the occasions

Initial, gather any evidence that the ticket is unjustified: perhaps a photo of an unclear sign, or proof that you have paid the correct quantity, as you will have a a lot stronger case if you can rely on much more than your word. You then want to contact the firm that issued the ticket. If you are fortunate, the operator will be one of the 150 or so firms that are members of the Approved Operator Scheme run by the British Parking Association (BPA).

The company need to then abide by the BPA’s code of practice, which signifies it need to have its personal appeals method. You will also have access to the independent Parking on Private Land Appeals (Popla). You can uncover out if your firm is an approved operator by seeking on the BPA’s website at www.britishparking.co.uk.

It is also worth getting in touch with the relevant retailer, train firm or hospital. If, for example, your automobile was parked outside Marks & Spencer, the retailer may take a dim view of any sharp practice by its contractor and could intervene to safeguard its own reputation.

Well-known appeal

You should hear from the auto park operator within 28 days. If your appeal is unsuccessful, the firm will send out a verification code and a type to start off the Popla process. You need to make your case inside 28 days and there are 4 grounds for a Popla appeal:

• The vehicle was not improperly parked


• The charge exceeds the relevant amount


• The vehicle was stolen


• You are not liable for the charge since you sold the automobile prior to, or bought it after, the alleged improper parking.

It is essential to don’;t forget that Popla does not think about mitigating circumstances. So, if you have been late back to your car simply because you fell down a ditch, Popla will throw out your appeal. Nonetheless, it is worth pointing out that drivers have won roughly half of the Popla appeals given that the organisation was set up in 2012.

If you park on private land and the operator is not approved by BPA, you alternatives may be a lot more limited and you will almost definitely not be in a position to appeal to Popla. Nonetheless, you can nonetheless set out your case in writing, like any evidence.

Court in the act

Some drivers pick basically to ignore any unfair parking tickets in the hope that the operator will simply go away. But it can be a risky approach as the parking firm could pursue the vehicle owner to court, generally the modest claims court, to recover any money.

The driver will not end up with a criminal conviction, but it could nevertheless be a time consuming and distressing expertise. Is it actually worth it?

Private parking, public concern

Motoring charity, the RAC Foundation, has recommended that millions of pounds worth of fines issued by private parking firms may possibly have been unlawfully charged.

In the legal opinion of land and house barrister John de Wall QC, working on behalf of the RAC Foundation, fines issued for overstaying in private carparks – which are often £100 or far more – were, at greatest, disproportionate and, at worse, ‘extravagant’ and ‘unconscionable.’

Mr de Wall stated: “Payments at the level that operators presently demand as sanctions are unlikely to count as genuine pre-estimate of loss they must be noticed by the courts as penalties – and this means they are unenforceable.”

The study also highlighted that some parking operators employ a company model which indicates they can only make a profit if members of the public overstay and can be charged an excessive penalty.

Private parking companies produced 2.2 million requests to the DVLA in 2013 for registered car owner details and – in the same year private parking penalties revenues might have reached £100m.

Director of the RAC Foundation, professor Stephen Glaister, referred to as upon the legal argument outlined in the paper to be tested in court so a binding precedent could be set. If the courts agree with the findings, thousands of motorists who have been issued with tickets could be in line for a refund.

The Court of Appeal will hear a test case subsequent week exactly where 2 drivers will claim that they have been unfairly treated by parking organizations and that they need to be reimbursed for the penalties they have paid.

We’ll let you know what happens…

Have you ever had problems from a private parking firm? Unfair ticket? Bully-boy tactics? We’d love to know, so leave a message in the box under

Another fine mess – parking tickets on private land

Yet another fine mess – parking tickets on private land

Updated – February 21, 2015

Most of us have at some time or an additional returned to our vehicle to uncover a parking ticket slapped on the windscreen. It is annoying and it is costly, though if we have broken the guidelines we usually spend up. But what if the ticket is unjustified? What if you are the victim of an more than-enthusiastic attendant, a basic error or a technical error?

You initial need to have to discover out whether the parking ticket was issued by the council, the police or a private company such as a supermarket, railway station or retail park. If the name of the police force or council is not on the ticket, then you are possibly on private land.

The distinction is important because police and councils have different powers to private car park operators. When you park on private land you enter into a sort of contract with the landowner. If you breach the contract, maybe by staying longer than your allocated time, you should count on a ticket.

Fine detail

Private vehicle park operators can not situation a fine or a penalty charge notice. It is also against the law for a private firm to clamp or tow away your automobile unless they have the legal authority, which must be clearly displayed. You have to watch out, although, as a lot of private firms do their greatest to make their tickets appear far more official, partly in an try to intimidate drivers.

Ok, so you are confident you are parked on private land. Are you also sure that the parking ticket is unfair? It’s no great huffing and puffing with indignation when you have in fact parked in a bay reserved for disabled badge holders. The auto park’s terms and circumstances need to be visible and if you did not break any of the guidelines you have each right to make a stand.

Sign of the occasions

Initial, gather any proof that the ticket is unjustified: perhaps a photo of an unclear sign, or proof that you have paid the appropriate quantity, as you will have a significantly stronger case if you can rely on a lot more than your word. You then need to have to get in touch with the firm that issued the ticket. If you are lucky, the operator will be a single of the 150 or so firms that are members of the Approved Operator Scheme run by the British Parking Association (BPA).

The firm should then abide by the BPA’s code of practice, which means it ought to have its own appeals method. You will also have access to the independent Parking on Private Land Appeals (Popla). You can uncover out if your firm is an authorized operator by looking on the BPA’s internet site at www.britishparking.co.uk.

It is also worth receiving in touch with the relevant retailer, train firm or hospital. If, for instance, your car was parked outdoors Marks & Spencer, the shop may possibly take a dim view of any sharp practice by its contractor and could intervene to safeguard its own reputation.

Well-known appeal

You must hear from the automobile park operator inside 28 days. If your appeal is unsuccessful, the firm will send out a verification code and a type to commence the Popla approach. You should make your case inside 28 days and there are 4 grounds for a Popla appeal:

• The vehicle was not improperly parked


• The charge exceeds the relevant amount


• The vehicle was stolen


• You are not liable for the charge because you sold the vehicle just before, or bought it following, the alleged improper parking.

It is crucial to keep in mind that Popla does not take into account mitigating situations. So, if you had been late back to your auto simply because you fell down a ditch, Popla will throw out your appeal. Nonetheless, it is worth pointing out that drivers have won roughly half of the Popla appeals given that the organisation was set up in 2012.

If you park on private land and the operator is not authorized by BPA, you options may possibly be much more limited and you will almost surely not be capable to appeal to Popla. Nevertheless, you can nonetheless set out your case in writing, which includes any evidence.

Court in the act

Some drivers select simply to ignore any unfair parking tickets in the hope that the operator will just go away. But it can be a risky method as the parking firm could pursue the car owner to court, generally the little claims court, to recover any funds.

The driver will not finish up with a criminal conviction, but it could nevertheless be a time consuming and distressing experience. Is it truly worth it?

Private parking, public concern

Motoring charity, the RAC Foundation, has suggested that millions of pounds worth of fines issued by private parking firms could have been unlawfully charged.

In the legal opinion of land and property barrister John de Wall QC, operating on behalf of the RAC Foundation, fines issued for overstaying in private carparks – which are often £100 or far more – had been, at very best, disproportionate and, at worse, ‘extravagant’ and ‘unconscionable.’

Mr de Wall said: “Payments at the level that operators presently demand as sanctions are unlikely to count as genuine pre-estimate of loss they must be observed by the courts as penalties – and this indicates they are unenforceable.”

The investigation also highlighted that some parking operators employ a enterprise model which means they can only make a profit if members of the public overstay and can be charged an excessive penalty.

Private parking firms created 2.2 million requests to the DVLA in 2013 for registered automobile owner information and – in the very same year private parking penalties revenues could have reached £100m.

Director of the RAC Foundation, professor Stephen Glaister, referred to as upon the legal argument outlined in the paper to be tested in court so a binding precedent could be set. If the courts agree with the findings, thousands of motorists who have been issued with tickets could be in line for a refund.

The Court of Appeal will hear a test case next week where 2 drivers will claim that they were unfairly treated by parking organizations and that they ought to be reimbursed for the penalties they have paid.

We’ll let you know what happens…

Have you ever had difficulty from a private parking firm? Unfair ticket? Bully-boy tactics? We’d really like to know, so leave a message in the box below

Yet another fine mess – parking tickets on private land

Suspect in court for theft of vehicle from the parking lot of a shopping centre in Pretoria

A 40 year old man appeared in the Bela Bela Magistrates’ Court on a charge of possession of a suspected stolen vehicle, after he was found hiding a vehicle which was stolen from the parking lot of a shopping centre in Pretoria last year.

The suspect, Cornelius Jansen van Rensburg was arrested over the weekend after police members followed up information about a Toyoya Hilux double cab which was hidden in a shack at the Donosa informal settlement just outside Bela Bela. The vehicle was recovered and when circulated it was found to have been stolen from the Sinoville Mall where it was parked in the parking lot during October last year.

The case against the suspect was remanded to 26 January 2014 for further investigation – he was not released on bail and will remain behind bars until his next court appearance.

Investigations to determine whether the suspect might be involved in more cases of vehicle theft are currently underway.

Suspect in court for theft of vehicle from the parking lot of a shopping centre in Pretoria

How will new legislation address the issue of parking license disks for the disabled?

Question:

My sister has contacted the local municipality responsible for issuing Disabled License Discs.This is a renewal not a new application, she was told that they would have to print the registration of her vehicle on the disc, and they are not allowed to issue more than one disc per person for any other vehicles.

This makes absolutely no sense, because that confines her to the use of only one vehicle. She owns 3. She also works in an environment which requires her to use different pool vehicles at any given time.

Please advise as there must be a way to resolve this because it is not practical or helpful to her situation.

Answer:

Reg 305A to D will hopefully address the matter once it is implemented.Parking for person with disability

305A.     A person—

(a)          whose mobility is severely impaired by a chronic neurological or physiological condition; or

(b)          whose mobility is temporarily but severely impaired,

may apply to a MEC of the province concerned to be exempt from any provisions relating to the parking of motor vehicles in the area of jurisdiction of any local authorities in that Province.

;

Application for parking exemption

1. (1)              For the purposes of this part, “occupational health practitioner” means an occupational medical practitioner or a person who holds a qualification in occupational health recognised as such by the Health Professions Council of South Africa as referred to in the Health Professions Act, 1974 (Act No. 56 of 1974).

(2)           An application for exemption from the provisions relating to parking shall be made on form AEP as shown in schedule 2 and shall be accompanied by-

(a)          acceptable identification of the applicant;

(b)          the appropriate fees as determined by the Minister; and

(c)           form AEP as shown in schedule 2, completed by an occupational health practitioner, stating the disability of the applicant.

;

Issue of parking exemption certificate

305C.     (1)         On receipt of the application referred to in regulation 305A the local authority shall satisfy itself that the application is in order and may issue an exemption certificate on form ECP as shown in schedule 2, to the applicant.

(2)           The holder of an exemption certificate referred to in subregulation (1) shall display such certificate-

(a)           if the motor vehicle is fitted with transparent windscreen, in a transparent protection holder, in an upright position on the inside of the windscreen in such a manner that the print on the face of the exemption certificate is clearly legible from the outside to a person standing in front or to the left front of such vehicle;

(b)          if the motor vehicle is not fitted with a transparent windscreen, in a conspicuous position on the left front side of such motor vehicle in such a manner that the print on the face of such certificate is legible from that side’ or

(c)           if such exemption certificate is required to be displayed on a motor vehicle in a position where it is exposed to the weather, such certificate shall be protected by affixing it to the inside of the transparent front of a durable watertight holder.

;

Period of validity for the parking exemption

1.      An exemption granted in terms of section 80 of the Act is valid for-

(a)          an undetermined period where the mobility of the applicant is permanently impaired; or

(b)         a period as recommended by the occupation health practitioner referred to in regulation 305B where the mobility of the applicant is temporarily impaired: Provided that the period for a temporary exemption shall not exceed 12 months.

• Inserted by r. 71 of GNR 846 of 31 October 2014 w.e.f a date to be determined by the Minister

;

;

How will new legislation address the issue of parking license disks for the disabled?

How will new legislation address the issue of parking license disks for the disabled?

Question:

My sister has contacted the local municipality responsible for issuing Disabled License Discs.This is a renewal not a new application, she was told that they would have to print the registration of her vehicle on the disc, and they are not allowed to issue more than one disc per person for any other vehicles.

This makes absolutely no sense, because that confines her to the use of only one vehicle. She owns 3. She also works in an environment which requires her to use different pool vehicles at any given time.

Please advise as there must be a way to resolve this because it is not practical or helpful to her situation.

Answer:

Reg 305A to D will hopefully address the matter once it is implemented.Parking for person with disability

305A.     A person—

(a)          whose mobility is severely impaired by a chronic neurological or physiological condition; or

(b)          whose mobility is temporarily but severely impaired,

may apply to a MEC of the province concerned to be exempt from any provisions relating to the parking of motor vehicles in the area of jurisdiction of any local authorities in that Province.

;

Application for parking exemption

1. (1)              For the purposes of this part, “occupational health practitioner” means an occupational medical practitioner or a person who holds a qualification in occupational health recognised as such by the Health Professions Council of South Africa as referred to in the Health Professions Act, 1974 (Act No. 56 of 1974).

(2)           An application for exemption from the provisions relating to parking shall be made on form AEP as shown in schedule 2 and shall be accompanied by-

(a)          acceptable identification of the applicant;

(b)          the appropriate fees as determined by the Minister; and

(c)           form AEP as shown in schedule 2, completed by an occupational health practitioner, stating the disability of the applicant.

;

Issue of parking exemption certificate

305C.     (1)         On receipt of the application referred to in regulation 305A the local authority shall satisfy itself that the application is in order and may issue an exemption certificate on form ECP as shown in schedule 2, to the applicant.

(2)           The holder of an exemption certificate referred to in subregulation (1) shall display such certificate-

(a)           if the motor vehicle is fitted with transparent windscreen, in a transparent protection holder, in an upright position on the inside of the windscreen in such a manner that the print on the face of the exemption certificate is clearly legible from the outside to a person standing in front or to the left front of such vehicle;

(b)          if the motor vehicle is not fitted with a transparent windscreen, in a conspicuous position on the left front side of such motor vehicle in such a manner that the print on the face of such certificate is legible from that side’ or

(c)           if such exemption certificate is required to be displayed on a motor vehicle in a position where it is exposed to the weather, such certificate shall be protected by affixing it to the inside of the transparent front of a durable watertight holder.

;

Period of validity for the parking exemption

1.      An exemption granted in terms of section 80 of the Act is valid for-

(a)          an undetermined period where the mobility of the applicant is permanently impaired; or

(b)         a period as recommended by the occupation health practitioner referred to in regulation 305B where the mobility of the applicant is temporarily impaired: Provided that the period for a temporary exemption shall not exceed 12 months.

• Inserted by r. 71 of GNR 846 of 31 October 2014 w.e.f a date to be determined by the Minister

;

;

How will new legislation address the issue of parking license disks for the disabled?

Do hospital parking costs make you sick?

Are we getting ripped off by hospitals charging extortionate parking fees? More than 3-quarters (79%) of UK hospitals now charge for parking and many are now raking in more than £1 million a year.

And whilst most will agree the NHS needs all the funding it can get, it looks like motorists are as soon as much more getting used as a cash-cow to assist make up shortfalls in funding.

Sick bays

A series of Freedom of Information (FoI) requests from the Everyday Express to Well being Trusts across England have revealed that as a lot of as 74 hospitals raked in more than £500,000 in parking costs in the course of the 2013/14 economic year, although a additional 46 produced a lot more than £1million.

And although these figures want placing into point of view – there are about 2,300 hospitals across the UK, a quarter of hospitals in England do not charge, and charges have been abolished completely in Scotland and Wales – it does seem that some hospitals see on-site parking as a funds-generating chance.

Nottingham City Hospital, for instance, charges £4 per hour. That is twice as significantly as the city centre!

If you venture to London’s Royal Free Hospital, meanwhile, the parking charges may lead you to feel the institution’s name is somewhat ironic. They variety from £3 per hour, to £72 per day, to a trip-to- A&E-inducing £504 per week.

The FoI requests discovered 2013/14’s most significant earner was Birmingham’s Heart of England NHS Foundation Trust, which created just under £ 4million in parking fees, closely followed by the University Hospitals in Leicester, which pulled in just more than £3.5 million.

The parking charges lottery

It seems your hospital’s catchment location can have a enormous bearing on how much you spend to park there, as the infographic from MacMillan Cancer Help, highlights…

…but is something being completed about it?

MPs examine ‘rip off’ charges

In 2010 the government published a consultation on bringing an finish to hospital car parking charges, concluding it should be up to NHS regional trusts to choose no matter whether they charge for parking. It also recommended that charges should be proportionate and concessions must be obtainable.

But the suggestions look to have fallen upon deaf ears in some NHS trusts, though, prompting Robert Halfon, Conservative MP for Harlow, to raise the concern in the Commons as soon as far more. The most recent enquiries discovered it is not just individuals and visitors who are footing the bill: hospital staff are paying up to £200 a month just to park at work.

The situation is now being examined by Jeremy Hunt, the Health Secretary, who stated:  “I do share your [Robert Halfon’s] issues that the automobile parking charges in some hospitals are just as well higher.

“I recognize hospitals have economic pressures, as do numerous components of the NHS, but I am satisfied to talk to you at another stage about what specifically can be carried out on this concern.”

These ‘financial pressures’ consist of the estimated £200 million a year the NHS would drop by providing free of charge parking at all hospitals across England. But certainly it shouldn’t be down to hospital staff, patients and visitors to subsidise the overall health service through inflated car parking costs?

What do you feel? Let us know…

Do hospital parking costs make you sick?

Innovative IntelliSafe solutions in all-new Volvo XC90 for tricky parking and tight manoeuvres

• 
  Automatic bay parking as well as parallel parking


• The driver gets a bird’s-eye view from above the car

Designed around modern car buyers’ expectations of smart functionality, the all-new Volvo XC90 features a set of innovative solutions that make tricky parking situations and maneuvering in tight spaces perfectly easy.

Volvo’s IntelliSafe support technologies now include an upgraded Park Assist Pilot that can automatically reverse into a parking bay and execute hassle-free parallel parking. Furthermore, the all-new Volvo XC90 can display a digitally created 360° bird’s-eye view of the area around the car on the large centre screen.

“Several studies by research institutes reveal that up to 2-thirds of interviewed motorists feel uncomfortable in tight parking situations. Options such as the extended Park Assist Pilot and bird’s-eye view function turn these potentially stressful situations into comfortable, precise and safe manoeuvring,” says Dr Peter Mertens, Senior Vice President Research and Development of Volvo Car Group.

The further-developed Park Assist Pilot facilitates both parallel and bay parking by taking over and operating the steering wheel while the driver handles the gearbox and controls the car’s speed.

Ultrasonic sensors detect the parking space

The parking manoeuvre is based on information from twelve ultrasonic sensors around the car. When the driver activates the Park Assist Pilot in a parallel parking situation, the sensors start to scan the side of the car for empty parking slots. When a parking slot measuring a minimum of 1.2 times the car’s length is detected, the driver is notified by an audible signal and a message in the instrument cluster. In a bay parking situation, the slot needs to be the width of the car plus one metre.

The display then guides the driver step by step via texts and animations in the instrument cluster until the car is parked.

A bird’s-eye view from above the car

The all-new Volvo XC90 also features Surround View that gives the driver a 360° bird’s-eye view of the surrounding area with the car as the centre point.

Surround View relies on 4 concealed fish-eye cameras – one integrated into the front, one integrated in each of the door mirrors and one fitted above the rear number plate.

 “The 360° Surround View is exceptionally useful in situations where the driver’s direct view is obstructed, such as leaving a tight driveway with obstacles on the sides or when reversing towards a trailer or caravan,” says Peter Mertens. “360° Surround View also provides great support during parking, for instance when you want to make sure that all parts of the car are within the lines of a parking spot.”

Cross Traffic Alert

The outstanding IntelliSafe solutions in the all-new Volvo XC90 also include Cross Traffic Alert, which covers the driver’s back when reversing out of a parking space. It warns of approaching traffic up to 30 metres on each side, alerting the driver with an audible signal and a warning on the centre screen.

Also view:

Who is at fault for the rear-end collisions of cars reversing from parking areas?

Note on Insurance Chat the following:

What does the law say about stopping and parking on public roads?

Where is the safest place to park to avoid parked car insurance claims?

Innovative IntelliSafe solutions in all-new Volvo XC90 for tricky parking and tight manoeuvres

Can social media quit selfish parking?

If there’s a single word assured to grind a driver’s gears it’s ‘parking’. Whether or not it is parking fines, hazardous parking, selfish parking, or just an inability to park, there’s practically nothing quite like it to get a motorist’s mad up.

For some time, motorists have taken to social media, blogs and message boards to vent their anger over parking tickets, unfair fines or even how nearby councils are fleecing automobile owners. But, increasingly, it’s the drivers themselves who are left with nowhere to hide as much more folks are taking to Twitter to post very first-hand evidence of the UK’s most inconsiderate parkers.

But can this modern-day ‘naming and shaming’ of motorists really support curb the problem of impatient parking? We caught up with the smartphone behind @ZigZagCriminals (who took the image above) to find out…

Q. What prompted you to start off @ZigZagCriminals?

A. As I drive about the Wirral I see awful parking everywhere, specifically outside schools and even close to zebra crossings. I began the twitter feed to try and shame these bad drivers with their awful, impatient parking. Certainly it wouldn’t be so challenging to park effectively?

Q. Have you had much feedback from motorists?

A. I have had feedback from the public – but it’s primarily negative as it is typically from the driver of the vehicle that ‘starred’ in the photograph.  In truth, I’ve had to report and block some quite explicit comments and Twitter has been really supportive in this.

On the other hand, I have had a handful of like-minded members of the public, locally and further afield, who agree with what I’m doing. And they have supplied more images and comments to add too.

Q. Have the police taken an interest in what you are performing?

A. Not really but the regional council appears in each and every so often and parks its camera cars in locations I’ve highlighted. So it’s nice to see anything is working.

Q. Do you consider this kind of self-policing can aid quit anti-social parking?

A. I do not think that this sort of [Twitter] feed will ever completely cease folks from this sort of terrible parking. But I am seeing it significantly less and significantly less about the areas I drive. People don’t like seeing their pride and joy (sitting on zigzags on the road) posted on the web for all to see – and a witty comment underneath.

Curbing problem parking

There’s no denying social media can be a strong weapon in the fight against unsafe parking. Not only does Wirral Borough Council verify in on @ZigZagCriminals to check for difficulty parking hotspots, a local council in Suffolk has praised a parking campaigner who publishes images of negative parking to his Facebook page.

A Waveney District Council spokesperson said of the ‘Park it Right’ Facebook page based in Lowestoft, Norfolk:

“Any public help and awareness for considerate parking can only be a very good factor and if folks want to report incidents to us they can contact us or appear up ‘nuisance parking’ on our web site.”

And if naming and shaming a driver is enough to make them believe twice about stopping on college zig-zags or gate-crashing a disabled bay, it has to be worth a rapid tweet.

Just make sure you exercising a bit of caution and typical sense when carrying out so – there’s no telling how some drivers will take to getting outed as a zig-zag criminal.

Would you name and shame an inconsiderate driver? Or have you ever taken to social media to complain about someone’s drivng? Let us know…

[embedded content material]

Can social media quit selfish parking?

Ray of sunshine eases parking stress

Parking the automobile, specifically if it is in a tight spot (and there are witnesses about), has to be a single of my least favourite activities. So if a robot presented to do it on my behalf, I’d happily hand over the keys.

That’s specifically what’s getting trialled at Dusseldorf Airport, exactly where a kind robot referred to as ‘Ray’ is assisting drivers fit into tight spaces by parking their automobiles on their behalf.

Space invader

Not only need to this (in theory at least) reduce the quantity of prangs seasoned by motorists when parking, but it also frees up far more space, as Ray can cram 60% far more vehicles into one region compared to human drivers.

Possessing your auto parked for you is not the only perk either. The program performs alongside a smartphone app, which lets you know when your automobile wants to be collected to keep away from penalty charges.

But how exactly does it operate?

Sadly, Ray isn’t some cute R2D2 lookalike who jumps into your vehicle and requires control of the wheel as soon as you get into the carpark.

Alternatively you need to park your motor by something named a Automobile Transfer Station, exactly where it is scanned to establish its precise width and h7

Lots of other measurements are taken as well, such as the position and size of wing mirrors, as properly as your bumper dimensions. Once all these have been calculated, you choose up a ticket from a terminal and leave robot Ray to do his stuff.

Pincer movement

Ray looks a bit like a giant white angular pincer, which surrounds your vehicle and scoops it up making use of its 2 sets of forks positioned under the vehicle’s front and rear wheels. The car is then moved to the parking spot allocated by the software program method.

When you want to leave the carpark, you simply pay for your parking by machine, and your auto is returned to the Car Transfer Station.

Bavarian firm Serva transport systems is behind the technique, which has been created in conjunction with the Dortmund-primarily based Fraunhofer Institute for Material Flow and Logistics (whatever that could be).

Search ‘engine’

But Serva is not the only company to come up with technology to make parking simpler.

Google Now has launched a ‘genius’ service to support individuals uncover their vehicles in carparks. Having spent a lot of minutes wandering round different multi-storey carparks and town centres asking yourself where on earth I parked my auto, I for one particular would locate this service invaluable.

The ‘parking detector’ service performs by displaying the address where you last parked your automobile, and how far you are away from it. You can also see other places exactly where you have lately parked, which could be valuable if you’ve discovered a great parking spot and want to find it once again.