to fantasize about kicking the bumpers of every car parked half on the pavement

[ZonkedOut]

I walk to DD1's preschool along a busy, narrow B road. It seems that almost every time I go that way there is at least one car parked half on, half off the narrow pavement. Often such that I have to go onto the road with a pushchair and walking preschooler to get around the car. Or sometimes we just about squeeze past on the pavement, scraping along the wall

The road is narrow enough that other cars still have to go past in single file, so parking this way does not make it any easier for other motorists, just harder for pedestrians, especially ones with wide pushchairs or wheelchairs.

Every time I see a car like this, a brief thought goes through my mind of kicking the bumper as I go past, or knocking the wing mirror. I would never actually do it, but AIBU to fantasize?

Daisy I live in London and there are many streets where cars are allowed to park half on the pavement because the roads are too narrow for large vehicles like the dustcart. Your legal quote is either wrong or badly worded.

Just enough force to make them overbalance Sal...

All the better if I was cycling past them and could make a quick exit

You will start a thread if that trouser pulling desire gets the better of you, won't you Sal?

thefarside it's from the directgov website/highway coding. It does say that some areas have signs to permit it so guessing that's the case in the areas you speak of?

Yon but it's ok for me to walk my baby on the road on a busy corner! I do have to squeeze past a car parked every bloody day at the end of the street. And tbh everything scrapes against the paintwork!

Yon but it's ok for me to walk my baby on the road on a busy corner

Never said that, was very specific in my post, read it properly

LST Surely you have some idea who it is if it's every day? Can you not challenge them about it? Maybe they don't realise?

I have no clue. It They don't live on the street. Somebody put a note under the wiper last week saying 'shift your sodding car' when I walked back later on I picked it up off the floor to put it in the bin

I will indeed start a trouser pulling thread should the desire get the better of me ... from a prison cell probably whilst awaiting trial for being well dodgy!!

I don't know where the 'it' come from there...

'shift your sodding car'

I'm not surprised it ended up on the floor, although if they've been challenged before I am not surprised at the tone of the note.

LST - you could leave a note saying you have to push your buggy onto the road and that you are reporting them!
Then report them and keep doing it until the police sort it out.

The woman who lives in the house it's parked outside has reported it umpteen times as it actually sometimes blocks her drive! Plus she has 1yo twins and cant get the double buggy round it.

My mum used to embarass me, she had pre-written notes that she'd keep in her mum bag and put them up/on things that annoyed her. Parking on pavent was a pet hate, along with cars parking on both sides of the lane that is only just wide enough for a parked car and a slowly passing car, people parking in front of the garage/drive or opposite, parking so tight you can't open a door and fit a gnat tgrough the gap. She even had these faults coded, so 11a was wheelie bin left out on pavement blocking pedestrians, 11c was loose rubbish on pavement. I hated walking through the village when a teen with her. She is still head of neighbourhood watch and on the parish council.

However, I am starting to think she's right. Had to run the gauntlet along our lane to get into the village, nettles are high so everyone is parking miles away from the hedge allowing only narrow cars to pass 4x4's, tractors and trucks honk their horn 'til someone moves the offending vehicle. When I finally dodged through that bit and got near the pavement it's got cars fully parked on it. Village church have put a 20p parking charge on their car park which everyone uses to pop to shops or PO so everyone is rebelling by parking along the lane, it's a voluntary donation box, but it's really annoying me as it's now hell for us that live along it.

This drives me potty. I live in a road where almost eceryone parks on their drives, at night there is maximum 2 cars parked on the road... today there are none

So why the heck does a visiting van think he needs to park half on the pavement ? Its not like he would be fighting to get out

it's not on if they're blocking the pavement. On our street we have to park half on the pavement because the road is too narrow for everyone to park fully on the road. The pavements are still wide enough to get a double buggy down though (I know because I used to use one!)

This is a pet hate of mine too. Sadly, I suspect that a lot of the people that do it tend to drive everywhere and so aren't aware of just how dangerous it is. Also, wing mirrors are more likely to get knocked off by a passing car than a passing pedestrian and cost a fortune to get replaced so people are probably very cautious to avoid it. I do tend to say in a loud voice to the DCs "look, there is another idiot who doesn't know how to park a car" when one is so badly parked that it forces us onto the road.

Youwhale, I have a double buggy and I'm often forced onto the road, I've just done the school run and I've had to do it 3 times, at one point for a stretch of 10m. I've done that so that I don't cause any damage, but I'm lucky I live in a quiet village. You seem to be implying that the majority of people don't care if they hit something or not. I don't think that is the case.

bigjoe - that's absolutely not on that you had to go into the road 3 times!

I am in awe of kellestar's mum - I want to have pre-prepared notes in my bag now!

Like Hallmark or something - a note for every ocassion!

YANBU, well, maybe a little U for thinking it but not actually doing it. I hate this.

I went past the local dentist's and encountered car on pavement, blind bend, no space. Went in and shouted really loudly 'Anyone know whose car it is parked so no-one can get past on the pavement?' and a red-faced woman came out. She was pretty annoyed with me but I felt quite satisfied. Simple pleasures

I think a set of spiked punk wrist bands would do it. No need to go damaging innocent pushchairs with sticky out bits.

Drives me bat shit crazy

Salmotrutta, I know but at one spot the pavement is so narrow I cannot get past even when cars are legally parked on the road, another because a van was doing a delivery and the last because an idiot parks in the wrong place for school pickup.

It annoys the crap out of me. I'm a driver, I learned quite late in life (30s) and I think it's bloody selfish to block the pavement. My husband used to do it I made him move every time and gave him a gobful.

You know how he justified it? He said that if the car is on the road it is......

..... an obstruction

He was thinking of the convenience of drivers. Pedestrians didn't seem to cross his mind. I think that's possibly it in a lot of cases, tbh. I think that it is possible that they are seeing it through drivers eyes. All that matters is the big metal box. Mustn't obstruct other drivers. Someone walking can squeeze through

You seem to be implying that the majority of people don't care if they hit something or not. I don't think that is the case.

It's this thread and others exactly the same as this that give me the impression that's the case!

I think people are letting off steam, although I do like the idea of the wristbands.