to think that if you live near a city centre you should expect this

[mileend2bermondsey]

I currently live about 10 miles from a big city which I work in. To save money on parking in the city centre at on average 8gbp per day I drive to the outskirts of the city, park on the closest street that does not have yellow lines and walk just over a mile into work. I was chatting to a friend about it who said I was lucky my car has been nicked (dodgy area) then goes on to say she'd be fuming if commuters parked on her street. My opinon is that if you chose to live on one of the first streets without parking restrictions, there are bound to be people who will park there to save money, same with living near a train station. I used to live in a terrace opposite a shopping precinct, during business hours you couldn't park on the street for love nor money. It was part and parcel of living in that particular location, I got on with it until I could move and consider such factors when moving since. I certainly wouldnt blame the drivers or key their cars over such a 'slight' as my friend thinks may happen.

YABU. When you buy a property there are lots of factors that make up your decision and you cannot always get permit parking on the property you want or find one with a driveway.

My area used to be a free for all, with people not wanting to pay for parking at the station or in the town centre so they'd park in our area and walk. That meant I often could not park anywhere near my property which was annoying. Luckily we went permit parking a few years ago and things are much better. The roads are still full but at least residents can park in their own streets again.

I am disappointed but unsurprised about the increasing prevalence of mildly antisocial twerps around who take an 'I'm all right guv' approach to life. No arguing with some people when it comes to standards of decency and community, though

No arguing when it comes to the anti social, anti commmunity twerps who think their right to park 10 feet from their front door outweighs my right to spend 170gbp a month on debt repayments rather than city centre parking. Or perhaps there is a struggling single mother who has the choice between buying her kids new school uniform or paying for parking. I supposed she should just stop being a twerp too? Maybe I should ask the residents of the street if they fancy financing me to park in the NCP across the road from my work at 24gbp a day? Or the 8gbp per day car park half a mile away. Until theyre up for footing the bill I think I stick to parking perfectly legally and for free where I do now. Were not all bankers in Mercs cackling at inconveniencing residents rather than putting 50p on the meter, a lot of people have genuine reasons for being a 'tight cunt' who 'refuses to pay for parking'. Perhaps the residents need to have a bit of consideration when it comes to community and decency, instead of their 'im allright Jack' attitude as you say.

Perhaps the residents need to have a bit of consideration when it comes to community and decency, instead of their 'im allright Jack' attitude as you say.

Pot - Kettle.

I have done it to go to a restaurant near central town but 3/4 of every street in that area had permit holder only with the last quarter for anyone to park.
The city is really hard to get parking and iv paid £9 for only 4 hrs parking and still had to walk 15 min to my destination.
I would do it if I knew where to, if it was meant only for residence then it would be marked as so.

Errm, that was the point Mythical . If the NR parkers are acting selfishly, so are the residents.

In what way are the residents acting selfishly?

Read my post 08:54.

I did. All I saw was a rant about gbp (doesn't your keyboard have a £ key?) as opposed to a measured explanation about why residents who might want to park in their general vicinity are being selfish.

It's not selfish to WANT to park near your house but it is selfish to EXPECT it

You bought the house. Not the bit of road outside it.

No, I disagree. To want/expect to park near your house is very different from 'the bit of road outside it'

I have an American keyboard. Didnt really think typing gbp instead made it so terribly difficult to read, but clearly it is too taxing for some minds. My point was that if commuter parkers are lacking in decency and community spirit and are selfish for parking on a street they dont live on, then the residents are equally so for not considering that the commuters may have reasons which run deeper than being a 'tight cunt' for not paying for city centre parking.

Park where you like if you are not blocking anyone etc. I think I would vary which road I parked in though (which would mean more people would be annoyed but on a less frequent basis!) Chatting to a friend about this she gets notes on her windscreen regularly even though all of the houses on the road she parks in have driveways which are almost all empty when she parks on the nearby road.

Perhaps the parkers should consider that people have reasons that run deeper than territorial pettiness for needing to be within easy walking distance of their front doors.

We could be here all day going round in circles.

No taxing, just irritating with all these gbp rants.

You could go round in circles with that 'argument' - what about all the single mothers with debts who might want to park near their house? Or the older person with mobility issues? Or the person who has to struggle with multiple young children? Etc etc etc. As someone upthread said, if you're parking in a residential street when you don't live anywhere near the place just to save yourself a train/bus ride or whatever, then you're being a selfish cunt. You can do it legally, of course, and we all do it to save ourselves money and time - but ultimately the local residents are going to be disadvantaged.

If you have an issue - disability, children who need buggies, older people etc - then clearly a house with no drive or off-street parking does not suit your needs

it's not reasonable to expect people not to ever park outside a house in case someone needs to have direct access to their house

If you desperately need off-street parking, buy a house with it. Don't call people "cunts" because they don't know your personal circumstances

Youre both right, we could go round in circles.

All I'm saying is if you live near a city centre/train station/popular venue, on street that doesnt have off street parking or a residents parking scheme, dont be suprised if people park outside your house. That really isnt a hard concept to grasp is it?

If moving isnt an option your alternatives are:

1. get over it, park a bit furthur away and get on with your life
2. spend your life in an eternal anger, twitching curtains to see if anyone parks in 'your' spot and throwing dog shit at 'offenders' cars. I know which I would (and did) choose.

OP - don't think anyone's disputing any of that. I think where we're all differing is in our opinions of the people who do it.

Queen, is it lovely in your bubble?

But of course Queen - let them buy houses with driveways, and let them eat cake while they're at it

OP - you are missing the point or not understanding how these things work. People can buy houses in one area, the council can come along and extend the zoned parking and before they know it their 'safe' streets now become free parking areas for commuters. Schools get built in an area, residents are then faced with the daily misery of the school run. Additional trains are put on, more people start using the train to get to work, the station car park gets filled up and overspills onto the surrounding streets. Any number of things can happen to an area - it's not about 'getting on with your life' or not twitching your curtains or any other patronising sarky things - it's just about wanting to park your car in the general vicinity, rather than having to walk for ages because people from way outside the area are using the streets as a free car park. Hardly a big ask - but of course, it's not illegal, so nothing to be done about it.

Shall we call a truce OP?

proffers hand

Some comments:

(a) Not all station car parks have space. They are either small or busy or both. So you can't park in the car park. And it costs £8 a day in my local station car park so I'm not surprised if people park elsewhere.

(b) Not everywhere is blessed with decent public transport or park and rides.

So there are no spaces in the station car park and no public transport options.

So what do you do? You can walk (I do, 25 minutes). You could cycle. Or, you drive to a nearby street (where I am you can't get within a 10 minute walk's radius of the station anyway as it's all restricted) and park there. If it's not blocking someone's driveway I can't see the issue (most roads have driveways and garages where I live).

I'm not sure many roads are residents only for the sake of the residents (unless a councillor happens to live along it, oh I am so cynical!). I think it has a lot more to do with pushing people into expensive town centre car parks so that the local council doesn't miss out on its cash. I realise this may not be the case in terraced streets with no off-street parking.

As for tightwads, I wonder how many of you expect people to pay upwards of £5 a day to park near work when they earn the minimum wage? By the time they've paid for petrol they'll be paying to work!

I am well aware that not all stations have car parks - it was an example of what can happen to an area in terms of parking (and why residents might end up frustrated)

Ten feet from the door? I'd just like to park within a five minute walk of it. If everyone where I lived who was elderly, or disabled, or used a buggy, moved out as far as they would need to to afford a driveway, it would cause a housing crash and a thousand more ugly houses in the commuter belt

I'm up for a truce Saucy

When you buy a house you make compromises. A garden, third bedroom, seperate dining room etc - all compromises or choices that one might make

If off-street parking is so important to you (for whatever reason) then that's what your priority is. You choose not to take somewhere with a third bedroom or whatever, that's rhe choice you make.

(And yes I'm aware that a minority of people will buy a house and circumstances change)

It is thoroughly unreasonable to put such an emphasis on how very important off-street parking is to you, but somewhere without it, then moan that someone else has parked in front of your house

When you buy a house you make compromises

More of that 'let them eat cake' attitude. Queen - it might come as a surprise to you, but for many it's less about 'making compromises' and more about 'this is what we can afford'. You might also want to consider how local areas change over time, and with it the parking situation (see my earlier post) - especially true for people who have lived in one place for some years.