School parking - Ha!

[wasonthelist]

I do drive to take DD to school. This is because I am NRP and she (and her Mum) live 17 miles away with no practical public transport. I drop her off at breakfast club (and collect from after school) so am not subject the full horror of normal start and end times.

AIBU in thinking that the many parents who are so fucking lazy that they park on the pavement opposite the yellow zig zag school markings aren't really observing the spirit of them, even though they may not strictly be doing anything illegal?

They certainly make visibility tricky for me and the other parents who bother to park properly.

How come we never get anyone who does this sort of stuff commenting on here?

We got another missive home from HM yesterday. Reiterating that you are not to park on the yellow boxes (very very common problem) or on double yellow lines. Fire brigade asked to include request to parents not to park in front of fire station to drop off (outside campus but beside pedestrian access path) as that blocks the fire engines exiting the station in emergencies. Please respect the actual wardens (on road) and parent volunteers (in car park on campus).

And this is in a school where:
We are off the main road in the grounds of a 3rd level institution. 1 massive car park about 60 seconds from school (on foot - just over the hedge), a 2nd massive car park about 2 minutes walk to school access, and a 3rd decent car park another 60-90 seconds walk past that.

On top of car park at school gates. 20 spaces for parking in, and 2 WC spaces. A further 7 spaces to park in that are designated "kiss and drop" for morning drops - the DCs get out of cars on footpath straight into school, no roads to cross, so safe even for 4 year olds. YOu can pull in, get out of car to get bags and baggage if need be (from boot etc) and kiss/hug/wave to child as they go, then drive off yourself. Not leaving the car yourself. If child/ren are big and organized enough, you can pull in, DC opens back door and flings themselves out, and you can pull out again immediately.

They have run out of space a few times for bike parking and made extra provision on at least 4 occasions (now have parking for about 60 bikes and lots more just chained to fences).

LOADS of DCs walk all the way to school, and many parents park in the housing estate across the main road and cross at traffic lights with warden.

But there is a persistent minority, who feel entitled to act as they want to and need to park as close as possible for their little darlings to only walk 6 feet to the gates of school.
Persistent parking of cars on double yellows blocks others from exiting the 14 diagonal parking bays on the opposite side. Persistent offenders parking in disabled spaces (and there are a couple of disabled kids, and regularly have DCs in wheelchairs or on crutches with broken limbs etc - quite a sporty school and area!). Persistent offenders parking in "kiss and drop" and then walking DCs into school themselves. Persistent offenders driving straight through the pedestrian crossings, and sometimes parking right on top of the pedestrian crossings.

There have been a number of near (VERY NEAR) misses with some of those drivers - but they constantly ignore all the notices, and have gone as far as verbally abusing anyone who tries to prevent them behaving as they do (I don't think it has got physical yet). Even if that is detrimental to the safety of children who are not their own children!

And we really are lucky on our school. There IS adequate parking, it is just a very short walk from school gates but it is on the campus off the main road. The students are not there yet for school drop off. And there is still plenty of space for afternoon pick-ups as the College also has plenty of bike parking, and many students get the bus (good service locally) rather than drive. (A couple of primary kids get the bus too - but far fewer understandably with the concerns that their parents have about the irresponsible parking that happens).

People really take the pissing parking there at breakfast club. I was taking DS in and he thinks you're allowed to park there for breakfast club (s everyone bloody does) and I had to explain that it's "a bit naughty to park there" Que DS stating "oh, so and so's daddy is naughty" "uuuummm..."

So I know DS will be telling all his friends I think their parents are naughty. Great.

I do preschool pick up and drop off so also not subjected to the full horror but I saw a people carrier parked on the pavement next to the zig zags and wondered if they thought 'well I'm not parked on the zig zags so I'm OK' A teacher came out to have a word as I walked up. If they thought for one second about why the zig zags were there they'd realise that parking on the pavement is just as restrictive to a clear view to cross the road. Arseholes.

The thing is - when they park there, there is plenty of legal parking in the road - just a few steps further away.

Drives me bonkers at our school - the parking on the pavement thing especially. It's a ticket- worthy offence here in London too. Periodically traffic wardens turn up for a couple of days at 8.50am and people stop, for a week.
My 4 year old was about 30 cm from being hit by someone in a big 4x4 pulling on to the pavement. He was too low to be seen apparently..
We don't have adequate parking near school. Being London, though I can't believe the catchment is that big! I'm currently driving (40 weeks pregnant with SPD) and find it much easier to park a short walk away than get embroiled in the scrum outside school..

We don't have adequate parking near school.

No, schools tend to be on roads where people live and have drives and often there are yellow lines and zigzags. To expect "adequate parking" near most schools sounds like Tommy Cooper. "Just like that".

I am one of those shameful people who parked on a zig zag opposite my house during the recent Easter holidays. A tourist had parked outside my house so I stopped there instead, thinking it was ok because it was the holidays. It wasn't. There's £35 I'll never see again!

I honestly thought it only applied during school terms. Am still a bit cross about it. There was literally nowhere else to park!

We don't really have any probs with parking due to schools location, but despite that there's one dad who will always double park right outside the gate on a junction blocking everyone else in. It's so bloody entitled if I was the Head I'd have a word. But of course they don't. I try not to give him the evil eye as as much as I think he's a prize pillock his DW is lovely.

Seeing as how dangerous this is, I don't see why it isn't a 3 strikes and your child is no longer allowed to attend the school. Sounds a bit harsh but might make people think twice about behaving like arseholes.

A child was reversed into outside our school yesterday by another parent who had parked on the zigzags. I don't know how badly injured they were but this is what can happen. It's crazy at the school many parents who could walk don't and it gets silly. I've had parents pull onto the pavement just next to me and narrowly miss children. It's a miracle it didn't cause a death.

BrexitentialCrisis If you want sympathy for getting fined for parking on zigzags don't look for it on MN!

Seeing as how dangerous this is, I don't see why it isn't a 3 strikes and your child is no longer allowed to attend the school. Sounds a bit harsh but might make people think twice about behaving like arseholes.

Because that would mean punishing the child for the sins of the parent. How is that fair? Force a child out of a school they are happy (hopefully) and comfortable in, with friends, and make them start again somewhere new just because their parent is a selfish parker?

Seems unduly harsh on the child!

Our school is constantly sending out emails and texts about parking and safety. It just baffles me that it's the same few parents choose to ignore all of this and carry on parking and doing 3 point turns outside the school gate reversing onto the pavement and passing children. Even when there have been very near misses or reports that emergency vehicles have struggled to reach the school due to parking, they just carry on.

Why is getting their precious darling to the chauffeur driven school gate more important than the safety of everyone else?

This is a huge problem at our school. Parents complain there isn't space for parking near the school.... except I live on a street perpendicular to the school and there's plenty bloody spaces, just need to walk an extra 50 metres!

I live about 60 seconds' walk from a secondary school, but my street is at the other end of a lane away from the front gates. Parking restrictions have been imposed on the residential street next to the school, so parents park instead on the road into town. Badly. They're only going to be there for a short while, so 'it doesn't matter', except if you're behind/on a bus or lorry or frickin fire engine that can't get through, and the traffic soon backs up onto the roundabout, and a major A road.
In spite of this chaos every single day, not one of these twats thinks to venture around the corner to park. I've got over a hundred feet of free unrestricted parking space outside my house alone right now, and I bet a million quid the road by the school is rammed already. 60 seconds away. Madness.

Because that would mean punishing the child for the sins of the parent. How is that fair? Erm....then that is up to the parent...they should care about the welfare of their child.

Our secondary school has a lot of kids dropped off as we are semi rural.

There is a very well organised drop off point. You pull off the main road, to the drop off point. There is a roundabout at the top, you go round it and leave. It takes about 3 minutes.

And yet some parents block the road outside (so people not going into school end up getting held up) by parking on the zig zag lines.

There are 3000 pupils and teachers trying to get in an out. And still these people cause chaos, because they can't be arsed to take 3 minutes out of their day to drop the kids off at the drop off point.

It pisses me off

I wouldn't remove a school place but I do think dangerous and obstructive parking should put points on the driver's licence.

Some people will always park where they like regardless of the law and others. I watched a chap pull up on double yellow lines near a cross roads the other week. If he had moved forwards by 10 feet he could have parked legally - there was space for 3 cars to park. He went into the shop with his child (aged about 7), bought sweets and a bottle of coke (so not much to carry) and then got back in his car and drove off. No blue badge and no apparent reason why he couldn't have parked legally. People pulling out of the crossroads were having difficulty seeing if there was anything coming and he nearly collided with a car as he pulled out because he was parked facing the wrong way and had to pull across the road.

I have also seen parents park on the zig zags outside the local primary school. Parking on double yellow lines is common place in our village and it makes it difficult for children (and adults) to cross the road safely if they are walking to school.

These people are just too busy and important to park safely and legally. Their time is too precious to waste getting to school early enough to ensure they do so.

My sons school only has room for a small car park right outside the gate.
Out the back of the school is a large municipal park with three large car parks. It's about a 2 or 3 minute walk.
Guess what?
Yes, the vast majority are trying to get in the tiny car park, clogging up side roads, blocking people in the car park, parking on double yellows and the boxes, blocking in residents and double parking.
There are parents with disabled children and disabled parents who need to park close. The rest really could park in the park but they don't.
The worst offender is a chap in a works van who pulls up and parks on the yellow zig zags really early and then sits and waits with his child. He has plenty of time to walk and he is perfectly fit enough to, what with being a gas fitter. He doesn't. Except he couldn't yesterday as we had the once monthly visit from some PCSOs!
It drives the school staff nuts, it drives the residents nuts. I walk. On the rare occasion I don't, I park in the park car park. It's a short, nice walk!

I am a resident and a parent. We have plenty of parking around us but there is always that one parent that has to drop and drive off, parking on zig zags, making it difficult for children to cross the road, holding up the traffic and holding everyone up. Entitled bastards. Other people have work to go to as well but their needs come before all others.

Our school has told parents not to park on or opposite the zigzags or on the single yellow lines in the newsletter. However they still do so (on zigzags not very often fortunately). One mum used to park on the single yellow line every day, like it was her 'spot' but she hasn't done so so much since the newsletter notice came out.

This is a school located on a residential street with quite a small catchment area. Last week at DS's class assembly the headteacher had to ask someone to move because they were blocking someone's drive.

I would quite happily volunteer my time to be a parent parking warden at school time and think we should be given the powers to ticket these parents. It's every school I know. At ours there's a particular twat parent who drives one of those vile hummer things and parks it in an elderly residents disabled space every. Fucking. Day.

Oh yes, bring it on, a team of dedicated (and merciless) parent parking wardens at every school. Not equipped with tickets. Equipped with electric cattle prods.