Westminster traffic warden.
Discussion
My first post on Pistonheads! I've been lurking for months, though.
Anyway, I want to get something off my chest and this is it:
I drove into central London on Sunday and wanted to take advantage of free parking near to Oxford street. So I found a bay, and a traffic warden was checking the car behind. He then seemed to be happy and walked away. So I parked up and got out. Luckily, at that point, my friend saw a yellow parking restriction sign, obscured from view (from my viewing angle) by a telephone box. It was pretty unclear, and stated "mix use bay on this side of street suspended". Well, I reasoned, if the traffic warden earlier was ok with the other car in the bay, then it couldn't have been this one. After a bit of discussion and deliberation over calling the number on the board, we see the traffic warden return from around the corner, where he'd obviously been waiting for us to leave, and start to ticket the car behind. At this point I walk over and ask if this bay was suspended. He muttered something and didn't take his eyes off the machine, knowing he'd been caught. I got in the car and parked up elsewhere but was fuming at his behaviour. I never park illegally, and would never do so. But the antics of this guy would have seen me with a ticket and the suspended bay occupied anyway.
So, a warning to those who park in central. Don't trust traffic wardens and always check for suspensions (I saw another sign that was on the floor, and cars ticketed). It's enough to make your p**s boil.
Anyway, I enjoy the site!
Anyway, I want to get something off my chest and this is it:
I drove into central London on Sunday and wanted to take advantage of free parking near to Oxford street. So I found a bay, and a traffic warden was checking the car behind. He then seemed to be happy and walked away. So I parked up and got out. Luckily, at that point, my friend saw a yellow parking restriction sign, obscured from view (from my viewing angle) by a telephone box. It was pretty unclear, and stated "mix use bay on this side of street suspended". Well, I reasoned, if the traffic warden earlier was ok with the other car in the bay, then it couldn't have been this one. After a bit of discussion and deliberation over calling the number on the board, we see the traffic warden return from around the corner, where he'd obviously been waiting for us to leave, and start to ticket the car behind. At this point I walk over and ask if this bay was suspended. He muttered something and didn't take his eyes off the machine, knowing he'd been caught. I got in the car and parked up elsewhere but was fuming at his behaviour. I never park illegally, and would never do so. But the antics of this guy would have seen me with a ticket and the suspended bay occupied anyway.
So, a warning to those who park in central. Don't trust traffic wardens and always check for suspensions (I saw another sign that was on the floor, and cars ticketed). It's enough to make your p**s boil.
Anyway, I enjoy the site!
In 1997 we broke down on Curzon Street in Mayfair. The car was obviously disabled and the old bill had a word with us and left us a note for the car to the effect that they were aware the car couldn't move. The coppers told us to go and get some breakfast while we waited for recovery and said they would keep an eye on the car every time they passed.
We went into a coffee shop and when we returned the b
d traffic wardens had ticketed it. The police came past five minutes later and couldn't believe what had happened.
When parking enforcement was taken away from the police a monster was created. Traffic wardens were the scum of the earth then and they remain so now.
After a long appeal Westminster relented.
We went into a coffee shop and when we returned the b
d traffic wardens had ticketed it. The police came past five minutes later and couldn't believe what had happened.When parking enforcement was taken away from the police a monster was created. Traffic wardens were the scum of the earth then and they remain so now.
After a long appeal Westminster relented.
swamp said:
edo said:
ottiian said:
Don't trust traffic wardens
thanks for that nugget!!!
"Someone from the Village stunned by tough London traffic wardens!"
Sounds pretty typical
In Clerkenwell I've seen one literally sprinting to try and ticket my car when I stopped in a pay and display bay outside the office and leaned inside the door to drop some bags off so I didn't have to walk backwards and forwards from the car park half a mile down the road with them.
I've also seen them crouching, hiding behind bins waiting for people to leave their cars on single yellows
I also had to stop one once from ticketing my car when I stopped on a pavement, nose facing a gate into a car park that I was in the process of opening. He tried to tell me he wouldn't have tried to ticket me if I'd stopped on the double yellows across the dropped kerb... I wouldn't be surprised if he'd perched there the same time the next day waiting for me to stop on it to open the gate in the hope he'd get a few extra seconds to ticket the car while my back was turned.
In Clerkenwell I've seen one literally sprinting to try and ticket my car when I stopped in a pay and display bay outside the office and leaned inside the door to drop some bags off so I didn't have to walk backwards and forwards from the car park half a mile down the road with them.
I've also seen them crouching, hiding behind bins waiting for people to leave their cars on single yellows
I also had to stop one once from ticketing my car when I stopped on a pavement, nose facing a gate into a car park that I was in the process of opening. He tried to tell me he wouldn't have tried to ticket me if I'd stopped on the double yellows across the dropped kerb... I wouldn't be surprised if he'd perched there the same time the next day waiting for me to stop on it to open the gate in the hope he'd get a few extra seconds to ticket the car while my back was turned.
8400rpm said:
Friend at work paid for a ticket that lasted until 6:26pm, and parking was free from 6:30pm onwards.
traffic warden gave him a ticket at 6:28pm.
He was 2 minutes over his 'bought' time......can't really see that as an issue, and leniency isn't a word in the Traffic Wardens dictionary traffic warden gave him a ticket at 6:28pm.Your mate should have stayed in the car for 4 more minutes before buying his ticket that would have run out just as the free time started and he would have been ok
hurstg01 said:
8400rpm said:
Friend at work paid for a ticket that lasted until 6:26pm, and parking was free from 6:30pm onwards.
traffic warden gave him a ticket at 6:28pm.
He was 2 minutes over his 'bought' time......can't really see that as an issue, and leniency isn't a word in the Traffic Wardens dictionary traffic warden gave him a ticket at 6:28pm.Your mate should have stayed in the car for 4 more minutes before buying his ticket that would have run out just as the free time started and he would have been ok
k-hole to ticket him when it was 4minutes figures until it became free (he was in quite a rush at the time apparently, can't remember what for).If I walked past and saw how little time there was until it became free, I'd write it off. But nooooooo....
tamore said:
sleep envy said:
Why not just ask him?
if right there, they should tap on the window and inform the driver that the bay is suspended. if they did things like this, their reputation wouldn't be nearly as bad.play the game
sleep envy said:
tamore said:
sleep envy said:
Why not just ask him?
if right there, they should tap on the window and inform the driver that the bay is suspended. if they did things like this, their reputation wouldn't be nearly as bad.play the game
ks. if everyone employed person was a jobsworth, the world would be a bloody miserable place.Gassing Station | General Gassing | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff