To think it's ridiculous that people are still flocking to 'beauty spots'

[AiryFairyMum]

Last weekend parking tickets were issued because of all the selfish parking at Dovestones reservoir near Manchester. Lots of pavement parking etc.

www.manchestereveningnews.co.uk/news/greater-manchester-news/drivers-slapped-fines-people-flock-19596560

This weekend the same thing happened again. AIBU to think people should just walk near where they live, and not drive to walk, then park badly because the car parks are full with others doing the same. Yes, I understand the need for exercise, but no-one NEEDS to go on days out.

Bloody hell, those pictures. Does no-one understand what double yellow lines are for any more?

@BarbaraofSeville

Bloody hell, those pictures. Does no-one understand what double yellow lines are for any more?

Seemingly not. The roads are full of blind bends round there, hence the need for the double yellows, so pedestrians having to walk round the cars are in real danger there too.

I agree with you. Though appreciate that not everyone lives within walking distance of a nice place to walk.

I’ll stop travelling out of town to the surrounding villages when the people who live in the surrounding villages stop travelling into town to the supermarket. It isn’t essential - they can use the village shop. It might not have quite the same ranges as the supermarket, but they won’t starve. They should just shop where they live. Or are the rules different for essential shopping vs essential exercise? And if so, why? Especially as visiting the supermarket is likely to carry a higher risk of Covid transmission than a walk in the countryside.

We need to continue to drive to autistic ds's regular places but we don't go to popular places and park like idiots.

@HarryLimeFoxtrot

I’ll stop travelling out of town to the surrounding villages when the people who live in the surrounding villages stop travelling into town to the supermarket. It isn’t essential - they can use the village shop. It might not have quite the same ranges as the supermarket, but they won’t starve. They should just shop where they live. Or are the rules different for essential shopping vs essential exercise? And if so, why? Especially as visiting the supermarket is likely to carry a higher risk of Covid transmission than a walk in the countryside.

It's unlikely village shops would be able to sustain the entire village if every resident decided to do all their shopping there. Plus lots of villages don't even have one shop nowadays.

@HarryLimeFoxtrot

I’ll stop travelling out of town to the surrounding villages when the people who live in the surrounding villages stop travelling into town to the supermarket. It isn’t essential - they can use the village shop. It might not have quite the same ranges as the supermarket, but they won’t starve. They should just shop where they live. Or are the rules different for essential shopping vs essential exercise? And if so, why? Especially as visiting the supermarket is likely to carry a higher risk of Covid transmission than a walk in the countryside.

We haven't been to a supermarket since all this began. But some people don't have the option as village shops are much more expensive. Walking where you live is free though, so where's the comparison? Or do you think rural folk are coming to use your supermarket because it is prettier?

Parking on a double yellow and driving for a walk are two separate issues

Clamping / towing the cars away would have more of an impact

I think the only way to stop this is to have clearer guidelines, they should set a no one may travel more than 10 miles from their home with very strict exceptions:

Medical, proof of appointment required
Care duties
Escape from violence

Clear, objective, provable then no excuses.

Locally to me there were people having a go at dog walkers for driving a couple of miles to walk their dog early in the morning on the beach they always walked their dog. The moaners rarely went on the beach themselves but got really irate about it.

We live near a beauty spot and the number of people visiting now is far more than in previous years. At this time of year there aren't usually many visitors, even at weekends. It's as if people think they have been ordered to go out and exercise for an hour every day.

I live in a boring town with nowhere nice to walk. But I suck it up and just walk around where we live. We've got a couple of nice parks about 20 mins drive away but we're not even risking that. I wish there was a way to ban these selfish people.

"I think the only way to stop this is to have clearer guidelines, they should set a no one may travel more than 10 miles from their home with very strict exceptions:

Medical, proof of appointment required
Care duties
Escape from violence

Clear, objective, provable then no excuses."

You are also allowed to travel further if health reasons (not an appointment) require it.

And some people live more than 10 miles from a supermarket.

In my opinion it’s fine to drive to a fairly local outdoor beauty spot as long as you aim to keep back from others and perhaps walk along a route spaced from others whilst there.
It’s not ok to be parking along double yellows. If the car park is rammed and the only option is to park on double yellows then you need to go somewhere else

@billybagpuss

I think the only way to stop this is to have clearer guidelines, they should set a no one may travel more than 10 miles from their home with very strict exceptions:

Medical, proof of appointment required
Care duties
Escape from violence

Clear, objective, provable then no excuses.

There are exemptions, they are clearly listed. Plus, as a previous poster mentioned, you are allowed to travel to exercise if it is part of the care of a child with for instance autism (I know this because I have an autistic child and travel with his diagnosis letter). So the issue is that people are travelling who presumably don’t have any of the exemptions.

@HarryLimeFoxtrot your post was very small minded. People need larger supermarkets as they are much cheaper than local shops. My local shop doesn’t have a paypoint for me to top up my gas and electric. A tin of beans is £1.10, tesco value are 19p. It’s cheaper for me to get the bus into town and do a Tesco shop than try and do a weekly shop in my local corner shop. My next door neighbour has to eat gluten free, not much there for them either.

Obviously they shouldn't have parked like that. But we are going to go collectively mad if we have to stick to the same hemmed-in streets with the same houses and exhaust fumes and dog shit on the streets. Where I live it's actually impossible to socially distance in the park because it's so busy.

So if you live within walking distance of a beauty spot you should think yourself lucky all us living in built up areas agree to pay tax to stop it being built on and share a bit.

@billybagpuss

I think the only way to stop this is to have clearer guidelines, they should set a no one may travel more than 10 miles from their home with very strict exceptions:

Medical, proof of appointment required
Care duties
Escape from violence

Clear, objective, provable then no excuses.

I'd say double yellow lines are pretty clear. Not parking when there is no parking will reduce the numbers/crowding significantly, even if some people still travel to exercise.

I struggle to get vexed about people driving to go for a walk.

No, they shouldn't be parking on double yellows; as someone else said, if the car park is full, you need to go elsewhere.

@fairynick - I think the people living rurally should be allowed to travel to town to access the supermarket. But in exchange people living in the town should not be called selfish for wanting to access their nearest countryside. You’ve pointed out that the local village shop isn’t equivalent to a supermarket. I’m pointing out that doing laps of the local streets and/or industrial estate isn’t equivalent to walking in the countryside.

This has gone on so long, I can imagine some people would go insane if they couldn't access a change of scene for their walk. My town is surrounded by parks and commons so I'm lucky but if it wasn't I'd go mad for lack of greenery or whatever.

As long as people aren't parking like dicks, and keeping their distance I can't see the harm.

@Miljea

I struggle to get vexed about people driving to go for a walk.

No, they shouldn't be parking on double yellows; as someone else said, if the car park is full, you need to go elsewhere.

I agree with this.

It is a shame that journalists aren't "flocking" to offices and business parks and taking photographs there and then exposing employers who are forcing admin staff into work when they can be at home. That would be far more worthy of attention than people walking outdoors.

@Calmandmeasured1

We live near a beauty spot and the number of people visiting now is far more than in previous years. At this time of year there aren't usually many visitors, even at weekends. It's as if people think they have been ordered to go out and exercise for an hour every day.

There is nothing else to do, all leisure facilities are shut, no pubs, no seeing friends and family and people are sick of walking around the same streets all the time.

Don't behave like a dick (including parking) and all will be good.

YABU to use "flocking" like you're a Daily Express journo.