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Original poster

Would you like a ban on cars parking on pavements?

229 replies

StarsBright · 09/09/2019 13:00

‘MPs call for blanket ban on car parking on pavements.’

www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-news/car-parking-pavement-ban-britain-uk-government-a9096991.html

Having needed to use a wheelchair recently I’d really like to see a change in this behaviour. It makes it difficult to get around when cars park on the pavement without leaving enough of a gap for a wheelchair to get through. It’s also frustrating and dangerous for those with prams, the partially sighted and pedestrians.

I do understand that it’s not an easy issue to solve and some roads are very narrow, however there has already a ban in place in London for decades.

I’d be interested to hear thoughts on this!

OP posts:
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DGRossetti · 09/09/2019 14:03

If there is to be a blanket ban, can it be on cars that blocked dropped kerbs. Not residential driveways, but the dropped kerbs that are essential to get a wheelchair across a road. If DW comes across one it can be a 500 metre wheel to the next one (it it's not blocked).

Or alternatively, not going out that day.

So: crush cars that block dropped kerbs, in exchange for not banning pavement parking ? Sounds fair to me.

RavenLG · 09/09/2019 14:06

Unfortunately this country doesn't have the road infrastructure for a blanket ban like this to work. Not enough parking facilities or wide enough roads. If every house had off street parking it would be brilliant (even if every house that HAS offstreet parking bloody used it would be a start round here!)

Aroundtheworldin80moves · 09/09/2019 14:09

Road I used to live on... Houses with massive driveways one side, sports pitches on other side. Hedge line on pitch side. Normally fine, residents parked on driveways unless just stopping for five minutes. Sports pitches in use, you could barely get down road without cars parked on pavements and right up to hedges on other side. If you were lucky, they would leave enough room for residents to access driveways.
Pavement was narrow so most people walked down the road anyway.

Common sense is needed.

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Driving & parking
ohdearmymistake · 09/09/2019 14:12

It would be fine as long as there is plenty of good reliable cheap public transport all round the country, lots of parking spaces that aren't on the road, big wide streets with lay by type of parking.

Builders/developers should only be allowed to build houses that have more parking spaces than would ever be needed, and preferably not on green fields that have no public transport or amenities in walking distance around them.

Of all the shit things happening right now I wouldn't put this in the top ten list of most important (yes I realise that it is but on the grand scale...).

smemorata · 09/09/2019 14:13

If you have nowhere to park on the road then don't get a car.

It's not that simple. I can't afford a flat with a parking space where I live and when I moved in it was still possible to find proper roadside parking. Now there are always a few cars parked slightly on the pavement at night as there is literally nowhere else to park.

WitchDancer · 09/09/2019 14:14

A mobility scooter user here, just to say it is incredibly dangerous for me to go into the road because of cars blocking the pavement. I'm low so it's sometimes difficult to see what's coming, plus car users can't see you as well.

I would think the wider pavements wouldn't need this ban as there's room enough for cars to be parked too, but the narrow pavements need to have something done. The trouble is who would police it?

CuriousaboutSamphire · 09/09/2019 14:15

If you have nowhere to park on the road then don't get a car Said a city dweller with good transport links!

SnuggyBuggy · 09/09/2019 14:16

In an ideal world fewer people would need to own their own cars but we don't live in an ideal world. Better public transport might help

Kazzyhoward · 09/09/2019 14:17

No problem if people leave enough room for pedestrians/prams & wheelchairs.

Unfortunately, some inconsiderate morons don't leave enough room and therefore people with prams and wheelchairs etc have to walk in the road.

Pretty sure we already have laws to fine/move inconsiderate drivers who completely block pavements - how about existing laws are enforced first before we think about new laws.

And I don't care whether people wouldn't be able to park if they don't block a pavement entirely - that's their problem for them to solve. Why should pedestrians and wheelchair users have to go into the road to pass cars illegally blocking pavements??

DGRossetti · 09/09/2019 14:18

A mobility scooter user here, just to say it is incredibly dangerous for me to go into the road because of cars blocking the pavement.

People often say "wheelchairs and pushchairs" as if they are somehow exactly the same, but it's worth stating that while you can bump a pushchair down a kerb, if needed (the assumption being there is always someone pushing the pushchair) it can be much harder for a lone wheelchair user to do so if at all.

And mobility scooters can't tackle a kerb at all. They need the dropped kerb.

NannaNoodleman · 09/09/2019 14:19

Lack of parking isn't the problem of the pedestrian!

The lack of parking needs to be a separate issue... I know that pisses people off.

I work with people with visual impairment and complex needs. Pavement parking is so dangerous and restricts their mobility and access to daily life. It's absolutely not ok, I think it's selfish.

ellzebellze · 09/09/2019 14:20

Yes, I would. Pavements only have shallow foundations and are not designed to carry the weight of vehicles - the utilities tend to be near the surface too, and can be damaged. We've had endless water leaks round this area for about the last 10 years or so and the last time I spoke to a bloke digging yet another hole to repair a leak, that's what he told me.

Aside from that, it is a pain in the neck and dangerous for the elderly & disabled, and for people with young children in prams etc. They shouldn't have to go out into the road to get past vehicles blocking the pavement.

LoubyLou1234 · 09/09/2019 14:33

Our road is too narrow to not put 2 wheels on the edge of the path. The road would be block with cars either side. However there is plenty of room for a double buggy to get through as the paths are wide. Difference on streets with narrow paths tho!

DGRossetti · 09/09/2019 14:44

Just to add to the mix, I can't speak for anywhere else, but certainly there are roads near me where people "park" in their front garden with a good 12-24 inches sticking out onto the pavement ...

Would you like a ban on cars parking on pavements?
Samcro · 09/09/2019 14:45

i would love it to be banned. my dd is a full time wheelchair user and this really annoys me. I really don't see why she should have to go out into the road because someone has blocked the pavement.
it is not easy as you have to find a dropped kerb and often they are blocked too.

FabLaura · 09/09/2019 14:48

Yes. I really don't like cars parked on pavements. If your house doesn't have enough parking for your needs, why did you buy it 🤷‍♀️

LollipopViolet · 09/09/2019 14:50

Yes! As a visually impaired person it's terrifying when I have to venture into the road because cars have blocked the pavement.

ChardonnaysDistantCousin · 09/09/2019 14:51

Yes.

ChardonnaysDistantCousin · 09/09/2019 14:52

It’s really difficult to walk the dogs when there are cars parked on the pavement.

yellowallpaper · 09/09/2019 14:54

It needs to be thought about on a street by street basis. Cars parked on the pavement is the only way a fire engine would get by. Marked pavements or signs to allow pavement park g by a small amount is possible.

WitsEnding · 09/09/2019 14:58

Yes. Some roads here are so narrow that cars park on both sides and even unencumbered pedestrians have no choice but to walk down the middle of the road.
I have absolutely no sympathy with drivers, or the argument that they MUST have a car because they choose not to live and work within the same area. How do they think the rest of us cope? It's not luck.

SnuggyBuggy · 09/09/2019 15:01

A lot of roads and streets simply weren't designed for modern car use.

YaySeptember · 09/09/2019 15:02

No because the street I live on is very narrow, as are all the surrounding streets, and most people don't have a drive. If we all parked on the road no-one would be able to get past. The only place suitable to park on would be the green area in the middle and it would be a shame to lose that.

Ronnie27 · 09/09/2019 15:04

No need for a ban, just common sense.

CameraTime · 09/09/2019 15:43

I live on a street which is very narrow but with wide pavements. I could park my car fully on the pavement and there would still be space for double buggies and wheelchairs to get through. A lot of the neighbouring streets are similar.

In this area, a ban on parking on pavements would achieve nothing, but would be very annoying for residents (including disabled residents and people with small children.

The solution here would be for the council to take away part of the footpath and make the road wider, but I'm sure that would be expensive.