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'Parking advice won't work'
I REFER to the article on page two in the April 16 edition and would say that I have written to you on September 22, 2006, the police, and the council in the past about irresponsible drivers parking in an obstructive or dangerous manner.
Whilst all of your parking advice is admirable it just won't work! The British race has a problem that, I'm afraid, is prevalent in respect of a lack of consideration for others, particularly in respect of driving.
Drivers pass a driving test, to what standard these days is a moot point. However, as soon as they 'pass' they seem to forget everything that they have been taught and the Highway Code seems to be dispensed with immediately. I know of someone when questioned about not signalling shortly after passing the test said: "I've passed so I'm not going to do that any more!"
With reference to parking on double yellow lines, I have written to the police when they were responsible and when it was a criminal offence and the council when the offence was decriminalised in Horsham and Mid Sussex districts.
I have a particular problem with this offence outside my home where drivers abandon their vehicles on double yellow lines/white bollard restriction lines. The police are not interested and the council is totally ineffective.
After phoning the council on one occasion they eventually came some 40 minutes later and said, repeatedly in front of a witness, that there were no restrictive lines opposite my drive! I walked him to the road and he saw that there was!
He then said simply that there was no car there and even if there was they would have to give him ten minutes to leave! On another occasion I have reported a car parked and the council has emailed me that when they attended some nine days later that the car wasn't there!
I have reported, through 'Crackdown', 131 instances of illegal parking outside my home, schools, disabled bays and mobile phone users. I do not bother with parking any more because that is just 'spitting into the wind'.
There is absolutely no point in the authorities referring drivers to the Highway Code, talking to them, attending areas, where there are problems, in their fluorescent jackets holding a camera etc. People intending to create misdemeanours will not commit them whilst these people are evident. As soon as the coast is clear they will do so!
In my opinion, the police should be responsible for illegal parking on all yellow lines otherwise get rid of yellow lines! I also think that the public should be able to take a dated photo, of cars parked on lines to try to end this anti-social behaviour that affects us all so much.
The drivers should be fined 50 on the first occasion, 50 on the second and then their licence taken away for six months with no recourse to having their unexpired road tax refunded. This is the only way to stop illegal parking of all sorts.
I also am not that nave to think those people in authority, that can do something on this problem, are not perpetrators of this anti-social behaviour themselves.
And, above all, there should be feedback on actions so that the public can see that their involvement was beneficial to the public at large.
No member of the public should have any problem with my comments, if you adhere to the Highway Code, then this will not affect you one iota.
REX GIBBONS
Crawley Road, Horsham
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Thursday 24 May 2012
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