Driving Away While Ticket Is Being Written?
Driving Away While Ticket Is Being Written?
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Andy M

Original Poster:

3,755 posts

289 months

Wednesday 29th March 2006
quotequote all
I've just received this e-mail from a friend of mine:

Irate Friend said:
Hope one of you can help out with some much needed advice.

Earlier this evening, I parked illegally in a bus lane at around 7:30 outside Tesco Aigburth Rd, I was in there no more than 30 sec's.

When I got to the checkout, I saw through the window, a fat cellulite ridden lesbian, oh alright, a well-made policewoman about to write out a parking ticket.

Dashing out, I recalled reading in a Sunday Times article that, if the ticket has not been placed on the windscreen of your car you are entitled to drive off.

As I jumped into the car to start the engine, she's screaming for help and another lesbian appears from no-where.

I explained the ruling as I understood it, No 1 lezzie claimed there was no such ruling and by driving off, I was committing another offence.

Uncertainty gripped me, I switched off the engine and as the ticket was being written, in utter frustration was reduced to asking her pathetic things like, "been to Garlands lately," followed by "marvelous moustache you have there" and "the self-help books and assertiveness courses are certainly paying dividends for you, aren't they?" and "writing parking tickets, hardly counter-terrorism is it, "with a pathetic "back to stock-taking in Dolcis tomorrow then eh" amongst others and believe me, it deteriorated rapidly from there.

Now the questions that arise are,

(a) Have I been misled by her?

If the Times article was right, I could legitimately claim to have been deliberately misled and I was quite within my rights to drive off as the ticket had not placed on the windscreen. It may be my only way out of this appalling mess and saving 30 lovely pounds, short of doing a runner to Bora Bora, Kirkdale, or some other miserable outpost.

(b) Was I right to lie about her moustache?



I've pointed him in the direction of pepipoo.com and was wondering if anybody here had any advice?

He's guilty as charged, and probably deserves the ticket, but I'd still like to offer some advice.

Raify

6,556 posts

278 months

Wednesday 29th March 2006
quotequote all
AFAIK, you can only run away from a traffic warden, not Bib (or even lezzers in blue)

maxf

8,444 posts

271 months

Wednesday 29th March 2006
quotequote all
You can drive off before a parking ticket is placed on your windscreen (by a traffic warden). I remember on the documentory about Westminster Traffic nazis where one of the tactics they used was to distract a driver so they didn't drive off.

Not sure if this applies to a ticket being written by plod though?

tvrgit

8,489 posts

282 months

Wednesday 29th March 2006
quotequote all
Was it a parking ticket or for violation of bus lane regs?

I believe there is a difference - the first is a civil penalty and you can drive away from a traffic warden standing beside your car writing a ticket. The second would be a RTRA offence and if the ticket is being written by Bib (not wardens) then I think you have to wait and accept it.

Might be wrong though - just my understanding.

fasterpussycat

8,280 posts

252 months

Wednesday 29th March 2006
quotequote all
If the parking in that area has been 'decriminalised' then you can drive away. Check out the DfT's guidance page 87:

www.dft.gov.uk/stellent/groups/dft_roads/documents/page/dft_roads_027631.pdf

If the coppers are still doing it in your area then I am not sure.

James

fasterpussycat

8,280 posts

252 months

Wednesday 29th March 2006
quotequote all
tvrgit said:
Was it a parking ticket or for violation of bus lane regs?

I believe there is a difference - the first is a civil penalty and you can drive away from a traffic warden standing beside your car writing a ticket. The second would be a RTRA offence and if the ticket is being written by Bib (not wardens) then I think you have to wait and accept it.

Might be wrong though - just my understanding.


Parking is still criminal in some areas, it just depends where you park.

James

nickjm

361 posts

260 months

Wednesday 29th March 2006
quotequote all
Funnily enough I got a ticket today. He was there writing it as I got back to the car. I said can I just drive off now and then it doesn't count. To which he replied that they would just send it through the post to me anyway.

jvaughan

6,025 posts

313 months

Wednesday 29th March 2006
quotequote all
I seem to recall too from the Westminster Parking program that Traffic Nazi's er I mean Wardens had to physically issue you with a Ticket, and that meant placing it in a sticky wallet and fixing it to your vehicle. If you made it away, you were lucky.
If it was a Police Person, the Fixed Penalty could be issued in yoru absence and sent to the address of the vehicle owner a'la speeding penalty.

Section 12.10 and 12.11 afixing a notice to a vehicle, and "drive aways" Section 66(1) RTA 91



>> Edited by jvaughan on Wednesday 29th March 10:50

Davel

8,982 posts

288 months

Wednesday 29th March 2006
quotequote all
On a similar vain, my son went to collect some stuff for me in a van last Saturday.

It was almost twelve, when the shop closed, and my son was totally lost.

He spotted a traffic warden and parked up, with the engine running, got out and asked her for directions. Only then did he notice that he'd parked in a bus lane.

As the warden told him that she had no idea where the place was, she busily typed stuff into her machine.

Would this be his registration number and was he booked, because nothing was given to him and it wasn't mentioned.

Sorry to disturb your thread!

planetdave

9,922 posts

283 months

Wednesday 29th March 2006
quotequote all
When I wert' lad (this was all fields, you know) I was confidently told that a traffic warden was 'a police officer without the power of arrest'.
Times have obviously changed and we let Fred keep his red flag when the legislation changed.
Anywho - can anyone shed light on this ancient belief (apart from contracted traffic wardens being the spawn of the devil. Or is that a slur on the devil?)

fasterpussycat

8,280 posts

252 months

Wednesday 29th March 2006
quotequote all
planetdave said:
When I wert' lad (this was all fields, you know) I was confidently told that a traffic warden was 'a police officer without the power of arrest'.
Times have obviously changed and we let Fred keep his red flag when the legislation changed.
Anywho - can anyone shed light on this ancient belief (apart from contracted traffic wardens being the spawn of the devil. Or is that a slur on the devil?)


Police used to carry out parking enforcement in the UK but now all of London and a proportion of the country it is now enforced by local councils.

James

supermono

7,464 posts

278 months

Wednesday 29th March 2006
quotequote all
sean5302 said:
80-odd people in a bus could be held up by one selfish idiot who knows perfectly well that their action is illegal. Beggars belief.


I agree with the sentiment, but please -- 80 odd people in a bus? a)the chances of a bus actually coming down a bus lane in a randomly selected (let's say) 10 minute period is about nil, and b) The chances of that bus having more than a handful of people on it are... well small!

SM

planetdave

9,922 posts

283 months

Wednesday 29th March 2006
quotequote all
fasterpussycat said:
planetdave said:
When I wert' lad (this was all fields, you know) I was confidently told that a traffic warden was 'a police officer without the power of arrest'.
Times have obviously changed and we let Fred keep his red flag when the legislation changed.
Anywho - can anyone shed light on this ancient belief (apart from contracted traffic wardens being the spawn of the devil. Or is that a slur on the devil?)


Police used to carry out parking enforcement in the UK but now all of London and a proportion of the country it is now enforced by local councils.

James


Thanks James. Can you shed any light on the concept of police traffic wardens being 'junior coppers'?

tombaron

818 posts

269 months

Wednesday 29th March 2006
quotequote all
Andy M said:
I've just received this e-mail from a friend of mine:
Irate Friend said:
Hope one of you can help out with some much needed advice.
Earlier this evening, I parked illegally in a bus lane at around 7:30 outside Tesco Aigburth Rd, I was in there no more than 30 sec's.



This is my local tesco in term time and I unfortuantely have to rely on the stinking slow pieces of crap that buses are.

JonRB

80,080 posts

302 months

Wednesday 29th March 2006
quotequote all
supermono said:
I agree with the sentiment, but please -- 80 odd people in a bus? a)the chances of a bus actually coming down a bus lane in a randomly selected (let's say) 10 minute period is about nil, and b) The chances of that bus having more than a handful of people on it are... well small
Regardless, bus stops are for buses; they're not a special parking space for selfish tw@ts in a hurry.


>> Edited by JonRB on Wednesday 29th March 13:09

_dobbo_

14,619 posts

278 months

Wednesday 29th March 2006
quotequote all
sean5302 said:
Have you ever read such tosh in all your life?

Earlier this evening, I parked illegally in a bus lane at around 7:30 outside Tesco Aigburth Rd, I was in there no more than 30 sec's.

Does this person have a watch? Is it working?
If they really think they can get into any Tesco's, select their item, walk to the checkout and pay within 30s, they are not on the same planet as the rest of us.

This person parked illegally. They admit that. Then they are being disrespectful of the people we all pay to uphold the law. Disgraceful. If you commit the crime, do the time. In this case, pay the fee.

80-odd people in a bus could be held up by one selfish idiot who knows perfectly well that their action is illegal. Beggars belief.


bloody hell, soapbox alert!

the guy knows he parked illegally, his question was whether he was misled by the copper.

yes, he should pay up, but no, that doesn't mean it's ok for plod to lie (if that's the case) just so they can issue a ticket!

supermono

7,464 posts

278 months

Wednesday 29th March 2006
quotequote all
JonRB said:
Regardless, bus stops are for buses; they're not a special parking space for selfish tw@ts in a hurry.


Indeed so, but let's not go getting carried away with this notion of bus lanes being anything but a complete waste of good tarmac that could be put to much better use if cars were allowed to drive on it.

Sorry for hijacking the thread. I'm interested in the answer to the OP's question...

SM

Andy M

Original Poster:

3,755 posts

289 months

Wednesday 29th March 2006
quotequote all
sean5302 said:
Does this person have a watch? Is it working?
If they really think they can get into any Tesco's, select their item, walk to the checkout and pay within 30s, they are not on the same planet as the rest of us.

This person parked illegally. They admit that. Then they are being disrespectful of the people we all pay to uphold the law. Disgraceful. If you commit the crime, do the time. In this case, pay the fee.

80-odd people in a bus could be held up by one selfish idiot who knows perfectly well that their action is illegal. Beggars belief.




I think it would be fair to say that '30 secs' was little more than a figure of speech. Don't be going and having a sense of humour failure on us

Aside from this, your sentiments are entirely correct and I too think he did the crime so should be prepared to pay. The perpetrator in this will also know this is the situation.

Dobbo hit the nail on the head - my question is; has he been mislead by a police officer?

Thanks for the advice so far

justinp1

13,363 posts

260 months

Wednesday 29th March 2006
quotequote all
Although the ticket rule is correct, what the police officers were trying to get at probably was that a police officer can ask a vehicle to stop for any reason.

So, although a traffic warden would be screwed, they used this power to stop your car whilst they wrote the ticket. Not the reason why the rule is there but a correct use of it, I think.

To be frank, you knew the risk of the quick stop being small, and this time you were caught, there have probably been plenty of times you werent.

I would be more worried that what you were saying to them in frustration was not against some kind of dicrimination/sexist/racist law...

JonRB

80,080 posts

302 months

Wednesday 29th March 2006
quotequote all
supermono said:
Indeed so, but let's not go getting carried away with this notion of bus lanes being anything but a complete waste of good tarmac
Sorry, my mistake. I read the original post as "bus stop" but I can see that it was indeed "bus lane". Sorry, carry on.