Parking one! Pic included. Am I being petty?

[Larafromthe80s]

We have a drive which can fit 2 cars 1 infront of the other and a space on the road outside our house.
Next door have the exact same.
Both houses have 2 cars and neither of us double park on the drive unless someone random has used our road spot. We never take each others road spot out of courtesy.

Anyway a few weeks ago a family moved in on the street next to us, they have 3 cars. They also have 2 spaces on their drive but only use 1, then their other cars keep parking outside ours and our neighbours houses.
It wouldnt be such an issue but my husband's job means he's often called out to work throughout the night so we dont like playing car jenga, hence the fact for 7 years hes always parked on the street outside our house.
Anyway today the son's been parked there, hes gone out tonight so I've moved my car into the spot so my husband can have our drive when home.
However the family have just literally came and stood outside my house smirking and shaking their heads and now I'm really worried I've started a war but also conscious that I may have been really petty!
AIBU to be getting annoyed by this?

I agree that it’s odd that they would rather walk to/from another street, rather than use both their driveway spaces but it’s not rude of them. They have an equal right to the space on the road as you do.

if you make a double drive then that will vanish the inroad parking, because it would then block access to your extended drive. would council allow that/do you have to apply for planning permission?

We live on a crescent which has off road parking for one car and on road parking on one side only, so and the residents were all very precious about ‘their’ spaces outside their house on the public road. I had one woman run out on the pretence of welcoming me to the NH but she actually just wanted to let me know not to park in her space. Then the woman across the road actually knocked on our door asking me to move my car as her husband would be home soon.

It was ridiculous really, the three houses opposite had 9 cars and a work can between them, and they had a routine straight out of the sitcom bread that when one needed to move they all got in their cars to make sure no-one else could park there. It’s not as if there wasn’t enough parking, they just wanted to park outside their house.

To be honest you are both entitled to park in the space that is on the public road, no-one has the right to claim it.

*van

Yes you're being petty and I think you know it really. That said, I suspect I would also be petty enough to have done it 😂

How did they see you move your car if they are in a different road?

I agree that you need to widen your drive to allow two cars to get on and off though.

The road is for anyone to park on.
All you have to do is to make sure your husbands car is at the front of the drive before you go to bed. Problem solved.

@VirginMedium

if you make a double drive then that will vanish the inroad parking, because it would then block access to your extended drive. would council allow that/do you have to apply for planning permission?

If it’s long enough for 2 cars though you could widen at the top and both use the same entry point so no need to change dropped kerbs etc.

@Lockdownmummy

So none of you are using the two available spots on your own drive? You are probably all equally as annoying to each other 😂

Also what I was thinking. You’re both no better or worse then each other!

By moving your car as soon as theirs left you have probably started a parking war though.

Sorry but you have space for two cars on your drive - yes I understand the logistics of having to move one - but nevertheless you do have space for two vehicles.

Then there is the section of road outside your house which is the public highway that anybody can park on. It's not your "spot" it's for anybody to park on if they choose to as it's perfectly legal to do so.

I really don't think you can think it rude for others to park on the public highway outside your house when you have a two vehicle driveway yourself. You might just have to move the cars around which is easy to do.

Either everyone is being unreasonable or no one is being unreasonable. 3 households each with space for 2 vehicles on each drive. All three households only use one of their available off road parking spaces for presumably reasons of personal convenience. Anyone trying to claim ownership of the public road would be unreasonable

Why don’t you just park both your cars on your drive? I don’t get it. Street parking is for anyone but if you don’t need it, why take it?

It’s not your road parking space, it’s not your NDN’s parking space. It’s available for anyone to use.

You’ve been fortunate not to have anyone else needing to use it until now. Yes, it’s mildly annoying to not have free rein like you did before, but you’d no rights to that on-street parking.

We live in a narrow street. No driveways. Fewer parking spaces than cars.

Next door has 2 cars. When they move one car from outside the front of their house, they immediately park the other to save the space.

It used to annoy us. If they both happened to be out in their cars, DH would deliberately move our car to 'their space'.

But we quickly realised that it's an annoying quirk of theirs and there are far bigger things to get hot under the collar about.

Sometimes we have to park in neighbouring roads, but we get shopping delivered and DC is a teen, so it's not a big deal.

It's more important to us to have neighbours we get along with mostly.
We still roll our eyes when we see them doing the car swap thing. And it does grate occasionally, but at least they don't row noisily and constantly like their predecessors.

I'd say pick your battles (apols for the cliche). Good neighbourly relationships are worth their weight.

Yes you can move your car to the space kn the street if it is free but also so can they. You will have started parking wars having done it in such a obvious way. Watch as they start to use both spaces on your street now.

You are both entitled to park there. First come first served.

All 3 of you have 2 spaces on your drive but none of you are using both. Instead, you're going to argue over public road. That space outside isnt yours. It's for whoever gets their first so you need to change your mindset. They also need to change theirs and park one car on the road and 2 on their drive.

You've said you dong need to go out during the night so why dont you just park your car on the drive at the top and your husband parks behind you before you all go to bed. Then it is very easy for him to get out if he is on call.

You've got space for 2 cars off road. You dont want to use them and fine, but it makes you just as cheeky as the new family.

I think YABU

If it's the public highway it's not your space. It's not anyone's

But even though I know this, I would probably do the same as I get unreasonably pissed off with people parking outside my house

You can all come and park outside my house. I don't have a car and it's a public road so even if I did there'd be bugger all I could do about people parking there.

Obviously it will only be convenient if you live near me and as it seems you and your husband think parking in the next street is too far away I might not be able to help anyway. But the offer still stands.

Nearly forgot. You asked if you were being petty. Well...

Aww I'm sorry OP it's incredibly frustrating but me and DP Plan our car Jenga around our lives and it's part of our daily routine to rejiggle the cars based on who's going out next.
I get he has call outs or you might need to use your car unexpectedly (the first being more likely) then you leave his on the outside.

I start earlier than my DP on shift days. Mines always on the outside the night before.

I have to echo PP who say I think you've been lucky up till now. Forward planning needed, don't worry ! You'll soon get in to a routine.

I'm also confused as to a whole family can be stood rolling their eyes at you when they live in the next street... do you mean over the road ?

A parking thread - tick
A diagram on first post - tick tick
OP not realising she doesn’t own the public road - frowny face

It's looks like you have plenty of space outside your house to enlarge your drive. Talk to your local planners. Parking one in front of the other is a pain. Most of the houses here are out several times a day juggling their cars. Luckily we have side by side.

Yes petty.

I have the exact issue in reverse.

I have paid to upgrade my drive so that I can fit two cars on it. Unfortunately both my husband and son have become wheelchair users this last year and we need access and have a lot of visitors/carers coming and going.

Arsehole police officer neighbour had a tandem double drive but consistently uses the "visitor parking" outside his house. There is room for two cars but he parks so that no other car can park there. Apparently it's inconvenient for them to play car Jenga if he gets called out. So why live in a house that doesn't meet your needs then.

You're being ridiculous, spiteful and not very community spirited.

It's not "your" space, but it's not theirs either! I would be annoyed too. Having said that it's now going to get to be a mini war between you!

If they have 3 vehicles and 2 spaces surely they have no option but to use one of the spaces on the road?

You have the option to park all your cars on your own property, but choose not to.

Ultimately its public space, no-ones in the wrong and they've moved somewhere that doesnt accommodate their cars so thats the risk they take...but I can see why they might think you petty, rude and entitled.

Well you can park 2 cars in your drive but chose to only park one.
They could park 2 cars on their drive but chose to only park one.

Basically you are doing exactly the same thing so they can hardly shake their head and comment on that.