to think people shouldn't park on the pavement right outside school

[elkiedee]

I'm quite shaken up by a run in today - the kids' primary school is on a very little road and the pavements are mostly quite narrow to start with, and it's a very small area between CPZs, one of which was recently extended, meaning parking near the school is tighter. This isn't a school with a good reputation and I don't believe many parents actually live so far that they need to drive to school at all.

There is very little space even for everyone to walk to and from the school there really, and selfish car driving and parking really makes it feel a lot worse, and sometimes very unsafe (I've actually seen someone partly mount the pavement and move along it when I was actually on it with one of the kids, and that was in icy weather too).

Anyway, today I said something, and when we came out of the playground with my older son, the woman driving the car had moved a little further down the road, still pulled up on the pavement on the other side, and waited so that she and her husband could shout insults at me - two adults with a car to one with just my two children.

They also drove across and carried out shouting stuff out of the window at me further away from the school.

[hellhasnofurylikeahungrywoman]

People shouldn't park on pavements full stop (unless it has a designated parking area) anyone that does is a selfish wanker. Why is their heap of metal more important than a pedestrian?

[iseenodust]

YANBU. They are idiots. Ask the school to get the local PCSO to stop by a few mornings to monitor traffic/parking.

[Pendipidy]

At my dd s school we have to half park on the pavements otherwise the buses couldn't get past . I make sure i leave enough room for wheelchairs and double buggies though.

[madamginger]

I hate that. Our council has just (today in fact) painted a cycle lane down the main road near our school and it is going to cause parking chaos as most people park up on the pavement right where the lane is now. I am slightly smug that they will have to park elsewhere and not mount the pavement as my 2 year old is running along.

[themindwonders]

YANBU

i hate it full stop - school or no school

[jellybeans]

YANBU. I hate this and it seems widespread. People are just selfish. Happens at all schools I have been to and also all brownie and guide meetings etc.

[freddiemisagreatshag]

What did you say?

Doesn't excuse the inconsiderate parking, but might (depending on what you said and how you said it) have led to the shouting.

[tallulah]

Our school has a hotline to the local PCSOs. When people park on the pavement the school sec pops out and has a word with them, then rings the PCSOs. The same car does it 3 times and they get nicked.

[Fillyjonk75]

Our school has its share of parking problems, but l've never seen anyone park directly outside the school on the wavy lines. YADNBU though, but also councils do need to sort out parking around schools where lots of families can't walk. It's hardly a new problem, they've had their heads in the sand about it since I started primary school.

[elkiedee]

On the wavy lines? This is on the pavement.

Yes, what I said probably wasn't the wisest thing, I called her what she is. But I think lying in wait for me down the road, and then continuing to lean out of the car window even further away from the school to call me names, and this is two of them, is pretty psycho behaviour.

[Sirzy]

Some people seem to loose all common sense in their race to park as close to school as possible and in doing so make the school run so much more dangerous for all.

My local primary school has arranged with a church and pub that their car parks can be used at drop off/pick up time instead of parking on the residential street. Both are about 2 minutes walk away from the school yet very few people park there instead joining the battle to double park blocking pavements.

[LadyPessaryPam]

I would have called the police and taken video of it on my phone. I hope you feel OK now, things like this are pretty scary.

[TattyDevine]

Best way to stop that kind of verbal assault coming from a car is whip out your phone if you have one and film them, as well as their registration plate, and if you are too shaken to manage that just pretend to...something makes people actually listen to themselves if they feel they are being filmed, its a bit of an internal eye opener to how they are actually behaving and they are doing it because they haven't considered they might get caught.

The school run is just tricky for some We don't have any parking problems at our school thankfully, but its such a lovely school that people do go to it from a distance that can't be walked, plus many people have to go on to work. Its so so easy for people who can walk to hate on people who drive but there can be so many different worthy reasons why people do have to drive, and whilst parking on pavements is not ideal, IF there is enough room left for pedestrians/wheelchairs and double buggies (which is possible on many pavements) then its often preferable to either blocking a road or having to park outside someone's house and all that kind of malarky.

Not saying this is the case in your school OP but its often not black and white though may seem it.

[elkiedee]

Our kids' school is bottom of the league tables and I don't think most people come from far away. While parking is an issue, there was no need to park on the pavement outside the gates, and there really isn't enough space for people to come in and out of the playground at school run time without parked cars - most of the pavement is very narrow. There's no way these people need to park like that!

It was actually getting out my phone to take a picture which prompted this woman to start making threats.