Neighbour complained about DD’s parking

[soupofthedays]

We live in a cul de sac. Our driveway (red) can fit 2 cars, but since DD just got her driving licence, we now have 3 cars. Every house, except for the 2 at the end, has its own driveway. Our neighbour (green) parks her car on the pavement in front of her house. The neighbour across the street doesn’t own a car, so DD (pink) has started parking there. Our other neighbour (yellow) has asked if DD could park somewhere else, presumably on the road across from the cul de sac, because it’s causing her some trouble. She mentioned that she can still get in and out of her driveway, but she has to pull out, reverse, and then drive through. She can’t just swing around DD’s car as the neighbour (green) parks on the opposite side. She won’t ask the other neighbour to move as she’s always parked there. DD is reluctant to park on the other road because she wouldn’t be able to see her car from our house. I can see both sides really. Are we being unreasonable by saying no as she’s not actually blocking the driveway, or should we have DD park somewhere else?

Sorry about the terrible diagram!

In theory, yellow could back out (to the right) and then go forwards to get out to the left. But no, if it's parked legally, it's fine.

I agree except I’d say that the person using their car most should probably park further away.

I would want to have a closer eye on the car that’s used once every two weeks than the one I use everyday…

It’s not legal parking if emergency vehicles can’t get past.

That's a different issue because nobody's measured it. It's proving it - it would definitely be tricky on my cul de sac but whether it is on the OPs. Councils are lazy too, I've complained and sent photos of idiots parking dangerously abd illegal around our junction but they aren't bothered about stopping it.

If the neighbour’s having a problem immediately turning down the road past the parked car after driving forward out of her driveway I think it’s safe to assume an ambulance or fire engine would struggle to get past or be delayed. That’s not only illegal parking it potentially prevents or delays emergency vehicles from getting to the houses at the top including the OPs. People complained to our PC about parking in my cul de sac on that basis and no they weren’t lazy, a councillor came out saw the issue (no measuring) and we all got a letter saying if people didn’t park more considerately we would get double yellow lines. The council was more worried about someone dying because an ambulance couldn’t get to their house or was delayed getting a patient medical support by having to do a multi point turn. As soon as the council was informed they had liability. I said in a previous reply too, some roads despite being adopted, also have easements about preventing this sort of parking in the resident’s house deeds so someone can also decide to take private legal action. I have a feeling the OP hasn’t come back because this is actually an opposite and it may be the neighbour gathering opinions and info. Unless we live there we don’t know the exact details but the OP now has a lot of advice and info to make an informed judgement whoever she actually is.

OP is never coming back!!!
Give up people!!!

It doesn't necessarily mean a fire engine can't get past. Its about angles vs driving in a straight line.

True but if the neighbour had a fire or medical emergency how would a fire engine or ambulance cope with the angles and straight lines. Would it cause delays or issues if the neighbour had to be rushed to hospital.

Believe me that not every council is like yours! My council are notorious for not doing anything about traffic issues, speeding hotspots, bad parking, they build roundabouts to alleviate congestion and then completely neglect to build the all important connecting relief roads and now we have three roundabouts with no connecting relief roads. The council started resurfacing the badly dilapidated roads and pavements on our estate and did the most ridiculously minimal amount of work and left 4/5 ths unfinished to this day. They don't like responding or replying to this day either.

The ambulance wouldn't be trying to get into the driveway!

At the end of the day it’s all about how the OP’s PC or council deal with things. But it doesn’t look like the OP is coming back. Ours is active on parking, speeding, potholes, overgrown hedges etc

Ever heard of the bus?

Oh deary me! We don't all work two minutes up the road! There's not many people have a bus service they can use for work! My partner works at a hospital 26 miles away, there is no magic bus service that's going to get him there! He may also drive to other hospitals in the county to work on IT Network equipment so he cannot get around on buses! On my office days I work 15 miles away and there's no suitable buses! Are you someone who doesn't work for a living and doesn't have to commute? I work 8 til 5! There are no buses that would work for me! Aside from the fact I am going to have to get a bus to travel miles into the town centre to get a bus that goes right back past my estate to drive all way through the countryside villages to get to the town I work in! It's going to be long winded, expensive and the timings aren't going to work! Do you not think we need cars for other reasons to? My family are 26 and 36 miles way from me, if I didn't have a car it makes visiting harder when my partner may need the car too. What or I need to attend a hospital appointment somewhere and my partner's at work? You've created in your head a fake fairyland that doesn't exist where jobs and family and appointments are 6 minutes up the road and there are superfast buses that run anywhere you want, anytime you want and at great speed! Get in to the real world for god's sake! You can't even get from one side of the area I live in to the other in the bus without needing lots of time and money to take multiple buses there and back.

?? I wasn’t suggesting they would. And the neighbour’s driveway isn’t the issue. It’s the road directly outside the driveway that the neighbour has issues with so it’s not unreasonable to predict an ambulance would have similar issues getting up to the entrance of that driveway manoeuvring and back down the road, surely you can see that. If there was wide road space between the two cars parked opposite each other on each side of the road the neighbour would be having issues with angles and straight lines. Or should the ambulance perhaps park somewhere else and the crew walk to the emergency and carry the patient down the street

The neighbour is apparently struggling to get off their driveway and do a tight turn. Not struggling to get into the cul de sac off the main road.
Something that is pretty normal throughout the country.

That’s not what I meant and the neighbour isn’t struggling to get in and out of her driveway she’s struggling to manoeuvre in the turning head to get past the parked cars. So if she’s struggling how do bigger vehicles manage. The OP says “She mentioned that she can still get in and out of her driveway, but she has to pull out, reverse, and then drive through”

Shouldn’t not should.

any debate on this is a bit useless if the OP never comes back to clarify certain things. IF emergency services can’t get through the OPs daughter potentially faces hefty fines, her car being damaged where it is - fire crews tend to just smash windows of obstructing cars to get the hose through and if the water hydrant is at the top of the road heaven help them if it’s needed. Also, if someone complains and their parish / local council are active everyone could be prevented from parking by parking restrictions being imposed. There’s a lot of ifs buts and maybes. We can all do what we like wherever we like and many do - sometimes it works out fine and sometimes not so much

cars per house can’t increase exponentially no matter how much the kidults might need them.

follow this through logically to a doomsday conclusion; yellow neighbour gets peed off so ceases to use their own drive and parks on the road, they can’t be compelled not to, ‘safe and legal’ and all that. Council get concerned about parking both sides so put one double yellow in, parking opportunities limited still further so the only option is permit parking that residents have to pay for and get limited by permits per house that are available.

on the parking ‘either side’ of a driveway. Generally the parkee will pop-poo the difficulty of entry/access and claim the drive owner has limited driving skills and it is ‘only’
one extra manoeuvre. The driveway owner may have a different perspective.

my parents lived in a cul de sac by a school. Ended up with double yellows one side and not using the drive as the narrow road meant that once two cars were parked up to the driveway either side, my parents were able to only drive straight forward and back; not a chance of turning the wheel and getting anywhere.

The obvious option here is, as has been said, for the OP to block their own drive
and suck up the inconvenience of car shuffling.

This is a sensible view point. Parking is so often an emotive issue whatever your position and can escalate so easily. My ILs live in a cul de sac too, but the road is more lolly pop shaped. So a circle at the top with a straight bit leading up. Only 8 houses in the whole street. All houses have driveways and garages - room for 2, 3 cars. One of the houses round the turning bit at the top blocked part of the turning area by parking in front of their empty drive on the road. Another house off the turning area complained and said delivery vehicles were getting stuck, blocking and causing mini grid locks or reversing out onto the main road. Council got involved and threatened double yellows but the people who parked on the road in the turning area and 2 other residents further down went to the council as a group to say they didn’t want them so council said okay just park more sensibly and we won’t be putting in parking restrictions for the foreseeable as the residents don’t want them. The neighbour who parked in the turning area just carried on and in fairness they were the only resident who parked permanently on the road in that cul de sac and the straight bit at that point except for visitors who always parked on the straight part up on the pavement. All this hoo ha over parking became common knowledge because the neighbour who parked in front of their drive gossiped around to anyone who would listen that they had won the parking battle. So, when they heard about it, residents of other streets nearby saw an opportunity. Residents from other streets now go and permanently park all along one side of the straight bit of my IL’s street which is actually all along the boundary of the neighbour who wouldn’t use their driveway . That neighbour is now furious as there’s nowhere for their visitors to park anymore and they have to look out of their living room at a row of vehicles including a minibus and often a pickup. They can’t do anything because they made such a fuss about it being a public road and not wanting parking restrictions when the shoe was on the other foot. My ILs stay out of it, they have a nice big driveway and none of this has bothered them really.

Not as bad as my neighbours.They have four cars and a drive for only one. I will leave you to imagine how WE try to get off our drive!

For someone who works 8-5, you've had plenty time to have a go at other people's posts

Am I wrong though? I'm a quick typist and if you had any intelligence, you'd see that I typed nearly all my comments before it was time to start work this morning as I was WFH today! But do carry on being a twat and defending all the ridiculous people that think nobody should have a car!

👍

The magic solution is exactly what I suggested in the post you’ve quoted but not read. Block their own driveway, not their neighbours.

You have to look at it from a legal & highway code angle plus using common sense. Primarily - is there enough room for a fire engine/ambulance to get through - if not you're breaking the law and it could cost someone's life (at the extreme) or you'll maybe get a letter & a fine - it happens.

Next point is - are you causing an inconvenience to other residents? Do other people or their visitors park in the same spot sometimes?

Lastly, is it really causing grief/obstruction to the other party or is it just that she's being precious? If you parked it say a foot further back would she still complain?

There's no law about how many cars can belong to one house if they're taxed, tested & insured. We haven't got a drive but we've got 3 cars - we all drive, next door have a drive with 2 vehicles on it and a van that parks on the road blocking them in (only 1 driver). Other side have a drive they can fit 3 cars on, they have 4 vehicles & 4 drivers - they live on a corner so plenty of room for them to park. Yet we're the ones who get slated even though we park with consideration. It's been going on for 7 years - 2 cars vandalised, 1 has 17 scratches on it - done by the neighbour who doesn't even drive but thinks she owns the kingdom, she shouts things so everybody can hear her, we just laugh. She's a nut job.