to be furious at this school run parking nightmare woman?

[missced]

So, excuse me while I try to calm down..... it has only just happened you see! . Usual scenario,, busy residential street, school run parking at a premium. I always scrupulously avoid parking over residents driveway exits where there is a single dropped kerb. I have just been told off by some van driver's wife (house has four cars parked out front) for parking over part of their double dropped kerb. Their kerb is twice the size of everyone else's, no doubt to feed their car collecting fetish, but my point is, as I made politely to her, that I had left an exit for her. It just wasn't the one she wanted to use. I know tempers get inflamed at these times, but our local situation is terrible, and I try my best not to upset anyone. I used to live on the same road, it's a small community, and I don't want to be unreasonable but this woman was so condescending and entitled and told me off like a six year old with a toileting problem. If it was a question of access for pushchairs, wheelchairs or the blind it would be different. Why should she assume she can have two free spaces on the street outside her house when everyone else gets one? I am looking forward to tomorrow's parking battle .

YABTU, it's a dropped kerb, so she was right and you were wrong, and if it's such a small community why don't you just walk, or park a tin bit further away. Why are people in cars such lazy, entitled dicks?

Where I stay the parking at school is terrible we are encouraged to walk. I do not drive so I walk anyway but it can be a nightmare with all the cars most of the parents stay within 2 min of school! If she wasn't using drive n u were only dropping of then really she could gave just got on with it or BN more reasonable x

Leave earlier and don't park right near the school....simple!! That's what I used to do ( only when I was too late to walk) even if it made my child late for school. Plus I'm sick of hearing this shitty 'entitled' crap!! Is no one allowed to do well in life anymore or should we all become communist.

Sorry you were in the wrong, they paid for a double driveway.

I remember coming home in the middle of the school run once and there was one parked right across my drive. I beeped my horn, indicated and pointed that I wanted to park there. Give him his due, he moved and as I got on the drive, he parked right back there again! I was just about to get out of my car and give him a gobful when he got out of his car and started walking towards me....

I very quickly recognised that he was a policeman without all his uniform on. The epaulettes on his white shirt gave it away! he asked me if I would allow him to carry on parking there while he waited for a tow truck to pick up an uninsured car parked in front of him. He said just to let him know if I needed to go back out again and he'd happily move. I did tell him that it was his white shirted occupation that stopped me from yelling at him lol

And then there's the time I came home and someone was actually parked ON my drive.....

The OP has acknowledged that she was wrong but there are still posters arguing that it's dependant on white/yellow lines. The Highway Code is quite clear. I'm really curious to know why anyone thinks it's legal under any circumstances?

She may have paid for it (or the previous occupant) the council granted it, who are you to tell her what she can and can't have, especially when you are the one breaking the law!

I constantly have problems with people parking over our driveway, we have a dropped kerb. I contacted the council and the police and they both said it's illegal to block in a parked car but not illegal if the drive is empty.

I can't see anything in the Highway Code that makes that distinction Rosie and I'm genuinely curious about it (have a vested interest!).

Rule 243
DO NOT stop or park

where the kerb has been lowered to help wheelchair users and powered mobility vehicles
in front of an entrance to a property

The Highway Code isn't law.

Some of the "rules" are law, but whilst they are all things you should abide by, not all are illegal if you don't follow them

Where lowered for 2 purposes
Wheelchair users
Powered mobility vehicles (ie the mobility vehicles driven on pavements)
No ref in rule 243 to cars aka mechanically propelled vehicles as per RTA.
So this rule does NOT make parking on dropped kerb illegal.
However common courtesy doesn't make it right either

Well done, OP. I hope you are aware another 400 will tell you you were wrong regardless though, right ?

Friend lived around the corner from a police station and was constantly coming home from the school run to find their (private) cars parked over her dropped kerb blocking her out. Being in the police they knew it was legal and nothing she could do.

My daughter's school is a nightmare for parking so I do get your frustrations but you can't just park across someone's drive whether they have access in or out or not! It's not up to you to judge if they can or can't get their car out of the space you left them, you just don't park over a dropped kerb. You are in the wrong here and she had every right to have words with you.

Dropped kerbs are assessed on need,and generally applicant pays for
The lady was right,to reprimand you, you blocked her kerb
Why not Leave earlier, park a wee bit further away,walk a bit if it's so difficult

Also breach of Highway Code isn't an offence -sadly- or maybe all the school run Mums overtaking the parked cars in their half of the carriageway might think twice as they got near to totting disqualifications. Not that it irritates me or anything

...Where lowered for 2 purposes...

The rule covers the wheelchairs/scooters and the front of a property as separate things.

OK then Soup, here's the relevant section of the Traffic Management Act:

.... a vehicle must not be parked on the carriageway adjacent to a footway, cycle track or verge where—
(a)the footway, cycle track or verge has been lowered to meet the level of the carriageway for the purpose of—
(i)assisting pedestrians crossing the carriageway,
(ii)assisting cyclists entering or leaving the carriageway, or
(iii)assisting vehicles entering or leaving the carriageway across the footway, cycle track or verge;

I don't understand why the police are advising that it's ok if no car on the drive?

(1)In a special enforcement area a vehicle must not be parked...

I think there might be a distinction between what the police deem illegal and what traffic wardens can ticket for actually. It's illegal when there is a car on the drive because you are effectively preventing someone from leaving I think. That makes it more than a parking offence perhaps...?.

You're still a twat if you park over a dropped kerb though!

A Special Enforcement Area is just an area with restricted parking. Very likely that roads near schools have single yellow lines at least. If no yellow lines then I would expect the Highway Code to apply. I'm just a bit frustrated by the 'legal/illegal' argument!

It's a dropped down. You can't park there. End of.

Thoroughly enjoying the amount of people on here who think calling someone entitled is an insult. It doesn't actually mean anything. Good old mumsnet.