its ok to obstruct a pavement....................

[nightowl]

did you know? is this right?

theres a house near me and they are having a lot of work done. for over a week now they have bricks, concrete mixers and such on the pavement outside. this is a BIG house with plenty of space on the drive for these things. its right in the line of the "school run" and lots of parents, (myself included) have to take their buggies into the very busy road to get past. (its impossible to cross the road, dangerous corner). i phoned the local council to complain and i was asked "if you didnt have a buggy, could you get past" "yes" i replied. "then im sorry" she says "theres nothing we can do". how utterly crap is that?

It's pants.

Actually, surely that can't be right if you couldn't get a wheelchair past? Don't disabled people have their access rights covered by the disability act or something?

No, I don't think your Council is right. A house at the end of our road, right at a T-junction was having work done, and the builders parked on the pavement. It meant that we all had to walk on the road to get past them, and like you, it was on the route to school.
I phoned the Highways Dept of the Council and the Police - and the builders were told to move their vans. I'd keep trying - and emphasise the fact that it's on a corner. Good luck.

Whaaaaat? The Council said that? [disbelief emoticon]

Council are wrong - unless they have given the builder's a permit.
Normally permits are given for skips but they sometimes issue them for other building materials. Unlikely though if the property has room for them without causing an obstruction.

this is what Harrogate council say about obstructed pavements

Not that I am from Harrogate - just googled 'pavement obstruction' and got this web page.

It says specifically about when pedestrians are endangered by having to step into the road.

Ring back your council and ask to speak to someone senior rather than the brainless underling that you encountered.

Apologies for stray ' in builders before anyone tells me off

that sounds totally wrong to me

call again .. ask them the wheelchair question? and complain vociferously .. demand action .. pop a note through the householders door too .. they may not realise

do the note in the middle of the night so no-one sees you

Nightowl, if you're not having any joy from the local council or the Police, why not contact the local office of the Health & Safety Executive. Since it is a 'work activity' that is putting memebers of the public at risk, they should be interested.
I had a similar problem when I was visiting my db in Leeds last year, I was walking with 4 kids under 7 and a double buggy and had to push it on a busy road because of builders 'stuff' obstructing the pavement. Threatened the builders with the HSE and it seemed to do the trick because when I walked back along the road twenty minutes or so later, they had cleared the pavement for me.
Good luck.

Hang on a minute here. Instead of calling all these officials, why don't you go and have a word with the site foreman at the house. Try just pointing out nicely that it makes it really dangerous for pedestrians and ask if he could make an effort to keep the pavement free. Most site foremen that I've dealt with are nicer and responsible and would be happy to oblige. However, don't forget that they are also generally male and will probably have to be reminded periodically. If you do end up with an inconsiderate foreman, contact the architects or house owners.
I am an architect and we get requests all the time from neighbors for much less reasonable things than keeping the pavement clear and we always try to accomodate and encourage the builders to do so too.

That's sensible Sofiaames (although perhaps not so much fun!)