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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

AIBU to think this is really cheeky and rude (street parking related)?

30 replies

BinToHellAndBack · 22/05/2015 16:01

The street I live in almost all on-street parking with only one or two driveways. There's plenty of parking for residents and overnight you can easily park outside of or close to your own house.

The trouble is that very close by is a sports facility with no parking. At particular times of day the road become chaotic with no parking spaces to return to if you go out. Most of the people who park here do so considerately, but a few don't park close to the pavement and block the road to wide vehicles (it's a VERY narrow street). Others decide it's fine to block a strangers drive if there's no space available. Also frustrating (although perfectly legal) is the not parking even vaguely close to other cars and using up space that another car or two could park in. On the whole it's ok though.

I've spent a long time finding the lack of parking frustrating but have eventually decided that I just need to chill out about it. It is what it is, and using street parking is the only choice the sports-facility users have. I'm telling myself that my inconvenience doesn't equate to their wrongdoing (for most of them), even when I do have to traipse home from streets away with bags of shopping plus baby and toddler Grin. Plus I'm sure I've done the same without even realising at other times.

Two weeks ago, various neighbours (not ones I know) all suddenly started putting cones outside to mark 'their' space. All within days of each other. Even if they go out all day the cones are there, and as far as I can see no-one has dared interfere them to use the space for parking.

At first I wondered if someone was doing this as they were disabled and needed better access to their house (fair enough, no-one would begrudge that)... but surely not all of them all the same time?! It looks like someone may have gone first and others have seen their chance jumped on the bandwagon. I had to park next to one the coned-off areas just around the corner from my house a few days ago. As I pulled into it the net curtain shot up and a very angry looking woman glared at me for my entire parking job (whilst holding her curtain up above her head with outstretched arms and pressing herself up against the window!). And that was for parking next to 'her' coned off spot!

I just laughed at the time, but AIBU to think this is pretty harsh on other residents and possibly even illegal? Nobody minds the odd time of doing it if you're expecting a skip or something to be delivered, but 4+ people doing it every day is a lot of road lost that surely everyone is equally entitled to?!

OP posts:
LurkingHusband · 22/05/2015 16:06

The cones are an obstruction, and the police can remove them.

kickassangel · 22/05/2015 16:07

YANBU

Moomaloo · 22/05/2015 16:07

You sound very considerate, and your neighbours sound barking! They are being very selfish.

TedAndLola · 22/05/2015 16:08

Another example of ridiculous parking territorialism. I'd probably put in a call to 101 about the cones obstructing the road, but then I REALLY hate people who tried to stop others parking on public roads. YANBU

londonrach · 22/05/2015 16:10

Neighbour could in serious trouble with the police as its an obstruction on the highway.

LurkingHusband · 22/05/2015 16:10

Oh, and obstruction is an offence ...

Original poster
BinToHellAndBack · 22/05/2015 16:10

Oh good, not just me then!

I not sure that I'd want to waste police time just for cones, but maybe I could mention it to the council? Would they care?

OP posts:
Original poster
BinToHellAndBack · 22/05/2015 16:16

Good to know it is definitely an offence though (thanks Lurking) for if it gets out of hand or I see someone in the act of putting them out.

They do sound barking don't they!

I think one of them is the who glared at me and my toddler once as we stopped level with his house once to look at the birds on his bird-table as we were walking past. We were on the other side of the road at the time! Grin

OP posts:
Hissy · 22/05/2015 16:34

if you need to park ,remove the cones.

TedAndLola · 22/05/2015 16:35

I not sure that I'd want to waste police time just for cones, but maybe I could mention it to the council? Would they care?

Not sure about the council, but you won't be wasting police time. They will take the details and decide whether to do anything about it.

TheFlis12345 · 22/05/2015 16:42

Someone on my street does this with their wheely bins. It's normally not a problem as there are other spaces free but if there aren't (e.g. when several spaces are taken up by a moving van) I have no hesitation in moving the bin and parking there.

Original poster
BinToHellAndBack · 22/05/2015 16:43

Hissy - I'm just not confrontational enough to do that! It's the sort of thing I'd imagine doing but then chicken out and drive round the corner.

Ted True, I guess they don't have to come out if I gave all the details. Will think about it.

Would it be a 101 thing? By that I mean 101 as opposed to local station number (is it essentially the same thing?), not 101 as opposed to 999!

OP posts:
HappenstanceMarmite · 22/05/2015 16:46

Move the bastard cones!

drivingmisspotty · 22/05/2015 16:46

Lots of people do that near here, including two wheely bins with string hung between them to donate space in some cases. It is selfish. Although I do sympathise as it's near a station and the closer streets have residents only so parking must be a nightmare.

I never interfere with them as scared I will come back to slashed tires/keyed paintwork but it's very tempting!

Panicmode1 · 22/05/2015 16:47

They are completely in the wrong, but as someone who lives on a unrestricted road by a secondary school, I understand why they get driven to do it!

I too get sick of having to walk from two or three streets away with my shopping/children/puppy because the sixth formers with cars park (really badly) outside our houses all day (it's bliss at the moment because they are on study leave and the road is half empty during the day!) but I wouldn't dream of putting cones outside my house!!

Sadly, as the myriad of parking threads on MN show, there are too many cars needing to park in residential roads nowadays and not enough space for them - or the parking that is available is expensive, or, you have neighbours who live in a street with predominantly on street parking and Victorian semis, who have 7 cars to one house [annoyed], which then makes a bad situation worse!

Panicmode1 · 22/05/2015 16:48

that was a smiley fail - should have been Angry!!

AskBasil · 22/05/2015 16:51

Calling the police isn't wasting their time because it means you don't have to get into a personal confrontation with them.

They are committing an offence. It's absolutely legitimate to report them. Entitled gits.

Original poster
BinToHellAndBack · 22/05/2015 17:04

Panic, like you I totally get the frustration, it drives me crazy sometimes too.

It was actually reading other MN parking threads that opened my eyes to that fact that it's unreasonable of me to be cross with other drivers who are parking perfectly within their rights. It's the situation that's rubbish; not the gym/swim-goers. My neighbours obviously aren't on here Grin

Maybe I'll have some fun and swap their cones around (they're all a bit different)...

OP posts:
Panicmode1 · 22/05/2015 18:10

It's the only thing that I miss from my old house - my off street parking and garage. I would definitely mess with the cones though Grin.

I do think that it's hard to be objective when you live with the situation - no-one should be able to park outside my house but me, obviously!

Our road is a horrendous rat run (in addition to being a car park) and we are trying to get it shut off at one end to stop it; the entitlement from some of the 'school run mothers' who seem to feel that it is their right to use the road as a racetrack and we're being selfish trying to change things, is gobsmacking. I have tried to explain that we are all fed up with having our cars damaged, being sworn at for daring to try to park/pull in/get out of our cars during the morning rush, or having our children/pets almost knocked over, merely so people can avoid the 2 minutes it would take to go around along the main road, but it falls on deaf ears......too much selfishness all round these days, sadly.

Andrewofgg · 22/05/2015 19:20

I move cones onto the pavement if they are stopping me from parking legally and considerately. It's just arrogant to put them there.

Nettymaniaa · 22/05/2015 19:27

Take photos and report to council. My council threatens to fine £1000 is they have paced it there and there is an accident they are responsible

Fatmomma99 · 22/05/2015 19:30

Did the sports facility get built/open after people brought their houses?

If not, they're BU, totally.

I'd be tempted to mess with the cones... move them or decorate them (sick little faces on the top and put clothes on them). Or stack them all up. But I am quite immature.

Icimoi · 22/05/2015 19:38

I do move cones left out to reserve parking spaces in areas where parking is unrestricted. However, I tend to do it after I've parked my car somewhere else, in case the cone owner decides to vandalise it.

ChaosTrulyReigns · 22/05/2015 19:41

Just log on to the Fix My Street app abd report, the council will contact them. Think yiu can add photis. It's quite effective, I did it once with an utter tootbrain who said we couldn't Park outside his house abd threw his bin in front of my car to stop me parking in a legitimate space. I'm non confrontational, so drove off abd seethed, and taught him a lesson by Apping his arse from afar.

Andrewofgg · 22/05/2015 19:53

Fatmomma99 It does not matter which came first; if the road is not controlled they can park on it. The residents can campaign for a parking zone.