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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

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Original poster

White line but no dropped kerb, anyone else had this?

85 replies

eastegg · 08/08/2019 22:39

Long time mner but first time on AIBU. Basically I'm pretty sure I'm not but wanted to vent!

Parking outside my child's nursery is in an unrestricted residential road. I don't always drive but sometimes have to. Been going there for the best part of 10 years and have 2 years to go. Never had much trouble parking but it's got busier recently.

I sometimes park in front of a house which recently had a white line appear in front of what would be a driveway if it had a dropped kerb. But no dropped kerb. The white line is different from the ones you normally get with a dropped kerb; a bit thinner and much nearer the kerb. I've been ignoring it because there's no dropped kerb.

Today I was later picking up than normal. When I came back to my car owner of house in question took me to task over parking outside her house. Said she'd paid for a dropped kerb and is just waiting. Did I have no respect etc. Did I want to see her 'authorisation ' whatever that means. I said it's not a dropped kerb and how was I supposed to know what the council have promised her. Think I was a bit too soft at one point and said 'now I know you're getting a dropped kerb...' although I don't think I finished the sentence. Generally though I stood up for myself, and didn't apologise. She ended up shouting and swearing as she got back into her car.

Grrr. Her entitled attitude has really got to me. At one point she said 'I don't want to see your car again ' like I was a naughty child. I'm also annoyed that she was distracting me while my wayward toddler was on the pavement next to a busy road.

I almost certain she hasn't got a leg to stand on. I want to park there again but don't want confrontation and don't want to spoil what have been 10 happy years going to nursery.

Anyone had similar?

OP posts:

Original poster

eastegg · 09/08/2019 09:29

Ok, some mixed responses.

I take the point about the council needing access at some point if they are putting a dropped kerb in, although the woman clearly didn't have that in mind when she was having a go at me or she would have said so. I'm only ever there for 10 minutes at a time, twice a day once a week as I walk the other times.

To those calling me selfish or suggesting I'm a dick, I think you must be basing this on the idea that I'm parking over a drive. I think that's the crux of this thread really.

There is a gravelled area outside her house where she seems to keep a car with a cover on it all the time. No fence or wall. She has another car I saw her in today. She has no dropped kerb. As far as I'm concerned she does not have a drive to be blocked. If she's using the gravelled area as a drive ie driving over the pavement then she is endangering the children at the nursery and all other pedestrians and breaking the law. I don't actually think she's doing that though, she certainly didn't want to put her car there yesterday as the covered car was there.

To those saying you wouldn't park over a drive even if there is no dropped kerb, what do you mean by drive? Any space outside a house which could be used to park a car?

I realise saying I want to park there again could sound belligerent but that is not what I meant, just that spaces can be hard to come by and I know I'm going to be there every week

OP posts:

newmomof1 · 09/08/2019 09:33

Well now she's made you aware that there will be a drop kerb you have absolutely no reason to park there, so if you continue to do so then you are being a dick - especially as the white line is there.

JammieCodger · 09/08/2019 09:48

Oh, MamaOomMowWow surely you know by now that I’ll-informed Mumsnet whatIreckonry far out-weighs a detailed knowledge of the relevant regs.

Not sure where anyone got belligerent from. I would have responded with a pass-agg “oh thanks so much for warning me, I’ll keep an eye out for when you have the kerb installed.”

Whatisinaname1 · 09/08/2019 09:52

Well if you really want to know if it's being dropped ask the council. That's what the locals here on fb seem to do from the fb site. In fairness though the paved areas here claimed as drives that haven't been given permission by the council all have good reason not to so the council are glad of the reports. Recent being a complete dick who illegally lowered his kerb onto a zebra crossing.

VivaLeBeaver · 09/08/2019 09:53

To those saying you wouldn't park over a drive even if there is no dropped kerb, what do you mean by drive? Any space outside a house which could be used to park a car?

Correct. It's usually fairly obvious when someone is using an area of their front garden for cars even without the dropped kerb. They do normally turn it into a drive, ie concrete it or tarmac it. In such a case I wouldn't park there.

I think your issue is complicated by the fact the car on the drive seems a permanent fixture which isn't moved as it's under a cover. In such a case I probably would park there - not for a lengthy amount of time incase that happened to be the first day in a year they decided to move it but for ten minutes, yes.

I don't think the thing about her endangering kids by driving over the pavement is true though. If she gets a dropped kerb will that suddenly make it less of a danger to the kids? The danger to the kids is the same regardless of dropped kerb or not. Thousands of people get in and out their drives every day even when near schools, etc without running kids over.

Cocobeanstalk · 09/08/2019 09:54

Well parking outside someone’s house is never ideal..let alone the same women’s house every week. No one wants to look out their front window and see someone else’s car

saoirse31 · 09/08/2019 09:56

Yabu. Esp for thinking its unreasonable for anyone to speak about something to you near a road, because you have a toddler.

SummerInTheVillage · 09/08/2019 10:45

Maybe try walking to nursery. I'm sure the poor locals living by the place would be very grateful. It can be hell living near schools.

annikin · 09/08/2019 10:53

Yabu. Official or not, out of consideration, I wouldn't ever park in front of somewhere clearly being used as a drive just because it didn't have a dropped kerb. It's obviously going to upset the other person!

Mistlewoeandwhine · 09/08/2019 10:58

Our neighbours paid someone to come out and paint a white line outside their house because someone once parked over their driveway.

VivaLeBeaver · 09/08/2019 11:09

Some councils will charge for having a line painted I think but it would still be official. If the neighbours had paid a random person to do it it's not official and they can get in trouble and be charged by the council for reinstating it.

AdobeWanKenobi · 09/08/2019 11:14

I would be gobsmacked if the council put in a H bar line whilst before dropping the kerb

Allow me to smack your gob
When we had ours done the council went round marking about three weeks before the work was done. We had a spray painted h line on the road outside where the kerb was to be dropped along with anyone else in the area who was having theirs done at the same time.

DarthFader · 09/08/2019 11:28

You can't get a ticket for parking on a white line next to a kerb...only yellow lines are enforceable. If there is no dropped kerb, even if she has applied for one but it's not yet built, you are within your rights to park there. Saying that the resident sounds like a pain so I personally would avoid parking there unless there was no where else to park to save having another argument, life's too short!

georgialondon · 09/08/2019 11:31

If she's trying use use her driveway without a dropped kerb she's breaking the law. So carry on until she gets her dropped kerb.

CCquavers · 09/08/2019 12:07

Why the hell do you think you are entitled to park in a white line? Just park somewhere else. Hold your wayward toddlers hand in future.

cocopops · 09/08/2019 12:14

Yabu and sound very entitled. Just park somewhere else.

Original poster

eastegg · 09/08/2019 13:48

Ccquavers why do you think I'm not entitled to park on the white line? What do you think it means? Have you read my description of it? It's not a council painted H bar.

I'm not going out of my way to park there, this is a busy London residential road I'm talking about. I think the poster who said it's not nice to have someone parked outside your house must live somewhere very different. There's always someone parked outside our house!

OP posts:

AldiAisleOfTat · 09/08/2019 13:57

Walking is good for you OP. You sound like a dick.

Original poster

eastegg · 09/08/2019 14:17

I've already said I often walk but sometimes have to drive.

aldi you've joined in with the casual abuse. Can you tell me why I'm a dick? Because I don't walk everywhere? That's the only thing you've picked up on.

OP posts:

AldiAisleOfTat · 09/08/2019 14:43

Eastegg
It's the refusal to consider anyone else's point of view. Always annoying when the OP just keeps bleating that they're right.

Original poster

eastegg · 09/08/2019 15:07

I think I am considering other points of view but it's tricky when those points of view seem to be based on a misunderstanding or are really vague and not elaborated on.

Example: ccquavers said why the hell do you think you are entitled to park on a white line?
I asked that poster to explain what they meant because from what I've said on here and what I've read online, a random white line doesn't mean a thing. So I wanted to know what I was missing, so I could you know, consider the other point of view . But that poster never replied.

OP posts:

HollyGoLoudly1 · 09/08/2019 15:18

I don't really care if it's illegal to drive over a kerb, if they have a car "area" and need access to it, it's a bit of a dick move to knowingly park in front of it.

Agree with this. Don't care about the technicalities/legalities etc., you can park elsewhere and not create a nuisance for the resident. I bet anyone that lives near a school/nursery must be absolutely sick to death of being blocked in/out of their house by parents doing pick ups and drop offs.

I work in a school and I never fail to be appalled at where some of the parents park abandon their cars, with absolutely no thought for the people that live there. It's so, so selfish. I'm gobsmacked that you describe the resident as entitled when they actually live there and you are only blocking the space/area/garden/whatever as it's convenient for you for the nursery

Nesssie · 09/08/2019 15:20

H-Bars are advisory only. To warn you not to park over an access for example. As she doesn't have a legal access yet, they are irrelevant.

Well parking outside someone’s house is never ideal then she should get a drop down kerb... Once she has that, problem solved. Until then...

Nesssie · 09/08/2019 15:22

AldiAisleOfTat Always annoying when the OP just keeps bleating that they're right Well that's because the OP is right. Householder doesn't have a drop down kerb and there are no yellow or red road markings. Therefore it is legal to park there.

It is illegal to create your own driveway.

VivaLeBeaver · 09/08/2019 15:44

Just because you can doesn't mean you should.

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