Primary schools and parking

[sproutish]

Not really an AIBU... more like is there anything I can do?

A local primary (0.3 miles from my home) is situated on a main 30mph road. There's no parking for the parents. Annoying for them, I know.

However every day at pick up/drop off, there are rows of 40+ parked cars along the road on yellow zig zags, as well as blocking the junctions to 2 housing estates by parking too closely to the bend. If you need to overtake the queue of parked cars, it's a leap of faith situation, as the road bends so you can't see the road at the end of the queue and see if anyone if driving towards you.

I avoid driving these routes at these times as much as I possibly can but sometimes it's unavoidable. Today a lady opened her car door and very nearly hit my car which was a turning point for me and I'm feeling less understanding towards the parents having nowhere to park etc etc. Having encountered this on the first day of term!
Other people on FB have said that the parents often tell them to fuck off when they're challenged about parking too close to junctions and so on. (This could be embellished for the sake of FB likes though so I do take it with a pinch of salt).

Pedestrians who need to cross the busy road need to be vigilant at the best of times, but can't see both ways clearly because of the cars.

Does anyone have any success stories about reducing hazardous/inconsiderate parking surrounding a primary school? What route did you take to get there? Did the school help you or just say it wasn't their problem? If it was a school on a housing estate I would be less peeved, but it literally faces out onto a main road where there have been many accidents before, including one with a fatality.

Just looking for realistic avenues to pursue here. More than being annoyed about the inconvenience of it all, I'm genuinely worried that there'll be another accident on this road very soon. Or should everyone who isn't dropping a child off or picking one up just suck it up and avoid this route at busy times?

This would really annoy me. Contact the local council who can get parking attendants out to ticket people. I imagine there is a car park or somewhere safe to park within 10 minutes which is not an unreasonable walk for a child to take. Some parents seem to think they have a right to park directly in front of the school gates. Our school often sends letters out to people reminding them not to block exits etc when neighbours complain.

Drives me mad. I have sympathy for parents who have to drop off their children by car on the way to work (I've been that parent) but that doesn't make it ok to park illegally or inconsiderately.

Parking round DS's school is a nightmare, though thankfully he's old enough to walk/cycle by himself though. I've really drummed into him about safe crossing etc.

There's been some success locally with strictly banning even driving down school entrance streets or getting the council to send a traffic warden. I've also seen a head teacher pacing up and down calling out parents - this was after a small child was almost hit by a car. Also lots of 20 mph zones near schools (and just about everywhere else).

I just don't get how some parents can't see how dangerous it can be.

Our school has this issue and despite a million complaints to the council, other than the odd traffic warden sent out who does nothing beyond tell people to move (no fines issued despite it all being no stopping), the problem is unresolved. I've been told to fuck off on many an occasion by some dimwit parked on the entire pavement causing children to walk on the road and once I had so many death threats hurled at me by a bloke, I didn't know which one to be scared of! All because I asked him to move so I didn't have to walk on the road with a child. The school refuse to take action as it is not on the premises.

Every school that I'm aware of has this issue. I was a teacher and it happened at every school I taught at. At one school, the roads were rammed for at least an hour and a half every afternoon. I visited loads of schools as part of my role at one time and it was the same at every single one. It's like it at our local primary and that's a building that's only two years old, so ample opportunity to build in proper parking.

When I used to collect children from school, it wasn't unusual to see people having shouting matches or fisticuffs because the road outside the school became single track at drop off and pick up time.

PCSOs zig zags, letters, newsletters, walking bus, staff going out to police....... none of it makes a long term difference. Perhaps the answer is to fine or clamp cars.

Talk to the school, they may have a police officer already allocated who can come and do a few morning patrols.