There is a section of road near my home and a railway station that had single yellow lines on both sides to deter commuters from parking. i.e. 0800-0930hrs
Recently one side was changed to double yellow lines.
Twice, over night, in recent weeks, someone has used some sort of black paint and obliterated the outer line of the double yellows
What is the legal situation re parking?
The lines were correctly layed out but are no longer clear to see.
What offence has been committed in painting out the lines?
|
"What offence has been committed in painting out the lines?"
Criminal Damage or there is a specific offence of tampering with a road sign, which if I recall correctly was an arrestable offence before SOCAP Powers kicked in last year.
It used to be the case if the lines or associated lines were not "in order" that this prevented tickets being issued. I believe the status may have changed now....I'd have to look it up though.
|
There is a specific offence under Sec tion 131 Highways Act 1980 if a person without lawful authority or excuse obliterates a Traffic sign on a Highway is Guilty of an offence.
Defence to show that the sign was not lawfully placed.
In this case a Traffic Regulation Order would be required to 'lay' down the line which has to be accompanied by plates to show the extend of the restriction unless a large conurbation is involved and Special Order granted and restriction shown at signs on entry to area. Such sign has to comply with that laid down in Traffic Signs and General Directions 2002 as to size and colour etc. If the line does not comply then there is an argument that it is unlawful. Common failure with yellow lines is that there is no T bar at the end - unlawful .
I find the short restriction time a bit strange so if I had an interest would be on to the Local Authority to see what the order stated in relation to the single/double line. It could be that there is no actual Order in being........ no Order no offence in relation to waiting unless an 'obstruction' occurs.
dvd
|
There are some double yellow lines in a handy place where we often park. They have gradually faded over the years and are now barely visible. Presumably if not maintained then at some point the restriction lapses - when 50% faded perhaps?
Of course, the more people park there, the quicker the lines wear out.
|
Double yellow lines have to be continuous and have t-bars at the ends or they're not valid. By law all road signs (including lines on the roads) must conform exactly to the regs, or they're invalid - and the important thing here is - even if a person could reasonably recognise them as being that sign.
So broken double yellow lines are technically invalid, even if it's obvious they're double yellow lines. You might have a hard time convincing the local parking enforcement officers though, so if you do park on worn or broken double yellows you could be in for a lot of hassle to prove you weren't illegally parked.
|
|
|
|
DVD
I think that there may be specific regs for Railway Stations - something in the dim and distant past rings a bell.
|
|
The offence could also depend on whether the police believe it was carried out as part of a potential terrorist act
|
|
|
|
|
|
Re: parking, Davies vs Heatley, 1971 et al. Case law, must be quoted in any appeal because the incompetent authorities believe they are above the law.
Re: obliteration of the line. I haven't a clue.
|
There's a thread about how to appeal parking tickets on broken/incorrect yellow lines here, with case law quoted and diagrams:
www.consumeractiongroup.co.uk/forum/parking-traffi...l
|
Although I've never seen them I'm told that in Ireland there are sometimes three yellow lines.
One line means no parking, two lines mean no parking at all and three lines mean no parking at all at all. ;-)
--
L\'escargot.
|
|
|
|
