Help! Nowhere to park!

[Guessie]

I know someone will come along and tell me I need to move to a house with it's own parking space, but those are few and far between and way out of my budget where I live! I've lived in my house for 6 months and never had this happen. I can't park! I have a 4 year old asleep in the car and I can't find anywhere within my permit zone to park. I've never seen it so busy. I'm currently sat in my car on double yellows in the hope that someone will move but at this time of night it's unlikely. What do I do? Pay for overnight parking and get a taxi? Can't really afford that but might have to. I could cry right now. I'm so stressed out. Been driving round the permit zone intermittently in the hope that someone will move for the last 45 mins but no joy.

“The preceding comment is not a nasty comment ..…

.. get a grip FFS”

no irony in your world is there @PurpleButterflyWings

@JenniferBarkley exactly.

Hope you're doing ok OP. I have a 4yo and the thoughts of doing a 2 mile walk with her at this hour... Definitely an occasion to drop all normal rules and bribe with whatever sweets, juice etc will get him there. Hope the nap gives him a second wind and he skips all the way home.

I'm sorry you have had some unpleasant answers @Guessie. Please post when you get home and let us know you are OK.

Bless you OP. Please do update us when you arrive home so we know you're safe. I can't comment on your parking situation as I do not live in a city, but I do hope this doesn't happen to you again, sounds so stressful. Maybe invest in a cheap secondhand buggy once you can afford it incase it does

You’ve probably thought of this but what about dropping the 4yr old at home quickly and asking a neighbour to sit with them for half an hour while you park and then walk back? I’d also think about getting a really basic umbrella folding pushchair and blanket in case this happens again. It’s awful though (sometimes when I had a really good space outside my old house I’d avoid taking the car out for days if I knew I’d need it close by for a specific reason, like holiday packing). Thank god I moved out pretty soon afterwards.

Oh gosh how awful. I'm hoping you've sorted it now but I'd second the idea of asking a friend/neighbour to watch the child at your house while you park and walk back

My parents live in an area that can be like this for parking and I hate going to visit them at certain times of the day because of it. A few times they've driven to mine and left their car here (we have a driveway) while I take them home and collect it in the morning.

Hope you manage to find a space closer to home !

Me too, hopefully you won't need to park miles away. Look into it tomorrow though and see if there are nearer places you could get away with parking if you had to in future.

Download these 2 apps for the future. Yourparkingspace and justpark. Both helpful or find available parking nearby. Ie people selling their driveways etc.

Park as close to your house on double yellows as possible. Risking a fine isn’t important compared to keeping you and child safe. It’s too late to be traipsing around with a 4 year old.

I'm guessing there are no car parks near by.
I was in Winchester once and couldn't park anywhere. I ended up parking in a business's car park. I said sorry when I returned, but it solved to problem.

She can't afford a fine. The walk will be shit but come the morning all will be fine.

I'd risk the fine, but easy to say when I can afford to do so.

Then living in a city centre and running a car both sound like pretty bad ideas.

Any 24 hour supermarket near you?

Well if course because we all get to choose which property we live in....

Home!

Phew!

Glad you got home ok @Guessie what a nightmare!

How did you solve it OP?

I don't live in the city centre, I live near it. I live in a housing association property that allows a slightly lower rent than if I rented privately. I can't just up and move somewhere else and if I did it would still likely be far more expensive. My car allows me to do my job. I need a car for work. I wouldn't be able to get to work and pick my child up on time if I didn't have it. It's not an expensive car, I use minimal fuel and expense a lot of it through work. I budget for my insurance and Mots. Cars are not just for people with lots of money you know. Us poor folks are allowed them too. Honestly I just needed to vent in a moment of stress and now being told I shouldn't live in my house or have a car by someone who knows nothing about me. Just bizarre.

I found a slightly nearer parking bay which allows you to park until 8:30am for free so will wander over tomorrow morning and get it. Still a bit of a trek but I don't mind the walk. Just glad to be parked and not risk any kind of fine.

Oh come on, it was a ludicrous post. There is literally zero probability that there would not be a meter, single-yellow line or another sort of bay that was available at that time on a Sunday evening. It was utterly implausible from the start, as your obvious solution showed.