Here in the southeast, there's a strange new habit taken root.
Over the past few years, I've noticed the increasing number of people who park with two wheels on the pavement. Its understandable/excusable when the road is narrow, but it seems to happen even when there's ample space to pass. Used to be a rare (illegal!?) occurrence. I'm sure a psychologist would find it interesting. Is it purely a SE phenomenon?
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It happens all the time in Yorkshire and indeed the councils often have to replace the cracked paving slabs on residential streets
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Should we write to po-faced Paul about it?
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Lorries do the same and when unloading ton bags of sand put the stabilsers on the paving. Solution would be to replace paving with block paving. This costs about the same and moves rather than cracks. One advantage is there is no jutting edges to trip people up as it subsides! Also as the blocks are on sand they are easily removed and replaced.
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Poor old Paul Ripley seems to be getting a bit of stick on here lately. I've read many "experts" on advanced driving techniques over the years, and I think he is one of the very best. He is refreshingly undogmatic and open minded, unlike Roadcraft and many police drivers I have heard.
What is it some people seem to object to about his advice?
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Ditto, Tom - Paul does indeed talk sense.
Rgds
David
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I agree also, his column is very informative. It may not be stretching imagination too far to suggest he may have saved my life, by preventing me getting into dangerous situations. I drive very "enthusiastically" and his advice constantly pops into my head in all manner of situations.
People may be critical that his writing style has changed towards an absolute safety point of view, whereas 3 years ago he spoke more about driving safely at speed, but he never condoned exceeding the legal limit or the safe limit.
Cheers
Rob MKIV Supra
Author: David Lacey (---.proxy.aol.com)
Date: 28-09-01 21:12
Ditto, Tom - Paul does indeed talk sense.
Rgds
David
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Colin
Living in West Yorkshire I can't comment on the South East but our road has cars parked on the pavement on both sides two wheels on and two off. The housing is old Victorian no garages for most of them, terraced in the main. Many on the street have removed the front walls to give themselves a small run in where they can get one car in but the second and third cars live on the road. I am lucky by an accident of fate I have a double garage and a second drive for the Panda that HJ reccommended some time ago as a very cheap car to run. (It still is by the way HJ SWMBO uses it mainly now, I use the bike. I just wish the Mondeo was cheap).
Got to agree with Tom and David about PR I read the column every week in the DT on Saturday. Lots of sense spoken.
After I bought the Blackbird I heard that Honda did a 2 day course called the MAC (Motorcycle Appreciation Course) where you went out with an X police motorcylist or even in some cases a serving officer. They only have 2 people with them as a maximum and you are connected by an intercom link, he can talk to you, you can't talk back. I have talked about this before but it was some time ago. The instructer we had was a guy called Les Packham who also writes for some of the bike mags. It was the best two days I have ever spent on a bike, so much knowledge and experience passed on over two 250+ miles each day. (Both days seemed to be very wet). I think I paid about £150.00. Paul gives out similar advice included in the price of the paper, but it cannot even come close to the MAC course for obvious reasons.
I now firmly belive that there should be several levels of test for cars as well as bikes and several differernt levels of licence. Can you imagine how the roads would be if everyone drove like Paul or Les, WE could even drive fast!
Happy motoring or motorcycling.
Bill
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It is illegal but no-one is doing anything about it and they never will.
It is habitual in these parts (Herts), and youngsters in particular seem to think it is the right and normal thing to do. Apart from the obstruction to pedestrians and the damage it does to surfaces not built to carry road vehicles, running the car over the kerb also damages tyres and punishes suspension systems.
Those who do it say they are doing the world a favour by clearing road space; more likely they think they are protecting their cars from the risk of collision. I gave up hoping that anyone would do anything about it when a young mother with a baby in a pushchair apologized to a driver for touching his car, which was occupying more than half the width of the pavement. Talk about common sense turned on its head.
The latest trick in these parts seems to be to park so much of the car on the pavement that only the roadside wheels are on the road. Still, I suppose it is one of the lesser lunacies on the roads these days.
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I think it is only illegal in all London Boroughs, but you can still get ticketed for obstruction elsewhere, but that is a different offence from parking on the pavement.
Cheers
Rob MKIV Supra
Roger Jones wrote:
>
> It is illegal but no-one is doing anything about it and they
> never will.
>
> It is habitual in these parts (Herts), and youngsters in
> particular seem to think it is the right and normal thing to
> do.
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I used to live on quite a narrow road in Putney in London and was forced to park in this way. Some idiot, however, insisted on parking every inch of his Landcruiser on the pathway that he could get away with, thus rendering the pathway useless (and as Roger Jones said) dangerous for people, especially mothers with pushchairs etc! After Mr Pillock mentioned above moved onto the street, we suddenly all got parking tickets two days on the run. I appealed but on this occasion after delving into the facts I was in a no win situation. It is illegal to park with ANY of your car on the pathway, period - And I have that from two police officers and several people from Wandsworth council. Most will overlook it until you get some inconsiderate wally doing something similar to above but if you get fined for it you haven't got a let to stand on.
You've been warned!
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In Camden in London, traffic wardens have been done away with and replaced by "Parking Attendants".
The difference is that whereas traffic wardens are supposed (theoretically) to have some responsibility for directing traffic in emergency situations and helping motorists, keeping traffic flowing etc., the parking attendants are solely interested in maximising revenue from meters and fines. They are employed by a civilian company and not via the police.
Park with a wheel on the pavement there at your peril. A ticket is guaranteed.
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Some years ago Havering Council had a clamp down on pavement parking, just about the time that Traffic Wardens were replaced by the privatised service Mark mentioned. There was an outcry when teams of Attendants were sent round at 4am to issue tickets to pavement parkers! One amusing incident made headlines in the local paper, however, when a police car parked on the pavement outside Romford Police Station got a ticket!
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Regarding Bill's posting about Honda's Motorcycle Appreciation Courses and Motorcar Appreciation Courses, you get one free if you buy a new Honda Civic Type R, but in my road test on this site I have also included the phone number for booking one for a bike or car if you don't happen to have just bought a Civic Type R. I went round the Isle of Man TT Course on the back of a Honda Pan European with Robbie (who runs MAC) and though it wasn't quick it wasn't slow either and I could fully appreciate the sensible way he is likely to teach people.
HJ
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This week's quote from PR:
"Cycling on main roads can be extremely hazardous ... "
So if we did refer this to the aforementioned, no doubt he would solemnly say that parking with two wheels on the pavement is very naughty indeed. And by the way, you must eat up all your greens.
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There used to be a 'public information film' about this problem, broadcast during advert breaks. What ever happened to those? They were a good way of educating joe public about things like indicating on roundabouts and looking out for motorcyclists when pulling out.
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Years ago there was a, probably syndicated, column in another paper called "Believe it or not - by Ripley"!
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