What would you do?: parking work vans in the road

[joelallie]

What would you do: parking work vans in the road.

We live in a cul-de-sac of Victorian terraced houses. Parking is crap here ? totally bloody awful. The only reason I get to park at all is because I get home at 4 ? if we take the car out after that time we have to park miles away or on double yellow lines when we get home. It?s getting worse as more people move in with several cars. However atm the main whinge is that one of our neighbours who works as an engineer for an leccy distribution company. He has taken to parking his works van in our road ? when I say ?van? it?s the size of a small lorry, the length of 2 cars plus a hoist on the back and wider than any car. It is p*ssing me off . Not keen to mention it to him as parking is a very volatile issue round here . But there is a ?How?s my driving? phone number on the back of the vehicle. Wondering if I could ring it and let them know that one of their vehicles is routinely left in a residential street at night with presumably a load of tools in, and inconveniencing everyone. My DH won?t park his van out there for that very reason.

Or would that be horrible and sneaky and should I speak to the nightbour directly and risk getting a thump?

I doubt if resident's parking would make any difference. We sometimes take up to an hour to park within 300 yards of the house. Supposedly there is a half hour limit on non resident parking but this is not enforced. A resident's permit allows you to park but doesn't give you a space.

We are in the town centre and most cars are people at work all day, shoppers etc.

Zen

In your case They have to have a turning circle with yellow lines because of highway restrictions about reversing into a more main road than the one you are leaving..ie you must be able to exit from the side road in forward gear.

I often have to park 4 or 5 streets away (or park on the high street where I have to pay ggrrrr while someone else who shops parks on my street for free!) but honestly, I would save your anger and frustration for something else worth worrying about! Ask the council about whether they are allowed to park huge lorries there (they may not be allowed) but other than that, there's not much you can do.

I imagine you knew the parking was crap when you bought the place.

Also some resident's parking schemes charge a set amount for one car and a vastly increased amount for any subsequent vehicles - although if you are in a well-off area, it won't make any difference!

I actually sound very unsympathetic but I do feel your pain

this is why houses with off street parking cost a shedload!

Whereabouts do you live Joelallie? In London there is an overnight parking ban on any commercial vehicle over 5 tonnes. It may be that your local council have brought something similar in?

i had white van man park in front of my house for months - he obviously started work v early and used to rev up his engine at 5am but he did have the right permit to park there so there wasnt' much i could do. one day we got back and he was about to park there and I did a bit harumph, and looked a bit cross - and he moved

Bundle - don't like to harumph as he's my neighbour - though I don't consider his behavious is very neighbourly....

Fox - the parking was fine when we moved here about 9 years ago. There was never any problem with parking in the street - we wouldn't have moved here if there was as we'd had this problem in our previous house. But the council (bless 'em) have decided that this area of town needs to be turned into an area of high-density housing (basically one-person flats and bedsits) because it's relatively cheap. Many of our local shops have been turned into flats and the bigger houses too. People who live in these properties don't own cars apparently (according to the council). No-one told the new residents that though . Hence the parking situation gets worse and worse. When the little old ladies who have rented their houses die and their landlords sell the houses they get rented out as multiple occupancy to tenants who have a car each. Families who have lived here for years are getting shat on from a great height The residents associations have fought a sterling battle but we're onto a loser basically - many of the councillors seem to own properties round her and are only to keen to sell for development. Funny how this doesn't happen in the lovely leafy suburbs where the councillors live.....

Anyhow.Sorry for the essay but that is why everyone in our area is so mightily pissed off with it all. Poor van driver is just the final straw TBH but I do think he is being totally unreasonable. There is an external review of planning policy in the area so we're keeping our fingers crossed.

Might try the council though to see if there are any rules on large commercial vehicles. I did try the number on the back of the van but..... strangely enough the number was unobtainable....

it was a silent harumph, i must have looked so crestfallen at the thought of lugging heavy shopping across the street, he moved