Parking under Motorway bridges

[VFK44]

When driving along country B roads, there is sometimes a huge Motorway (or dual carriageway) bridge, with a span far greater than the puny road it crosses. The unused part of the span is paved as a giant runoff area next to the B road as it passes under the M-way.

What is the legality of parking on this nice clear area? The public is not having a pavement blocked as the country roads don't have pavements anyway, except under the bridge.

Example (on RHS):
Google Maps

[200Plus Club]

Strange spot for dogging though ....

[Drawweight]

I’ve stopped under similar to put waterproofs on if I’ve been out on the motorbike and it starts raining.

But I honestly can’t think of another reason you’d have to stop there.

[NikBartlett]

Good place for undertaking nafarious activities ?

[Carrot]

Good place to organise a drug deal from someone else's car.

[Louis Balfour]

I used to meet up with a motorbiking friend, who used to park up and wait under just such a bridge. He was a policeman. Make of that what you will.

[eldrich]

Very popular places over here for people to play their saxophones and other loud instruments, out of the direct sun, out of the rain and away from the rest of the family.

[bristolracer]

Although there are no pavements there may still be pedestrians. The pavement is there to allow any pedestrians a safer route through the tunnel that the bridge creates.

[HantsRat]

Just had a look and there is a pavement albeit small so it probably is used by pedestrians albeit rarely. The white line isn't enforceable but I would imagine if you parked there and p*ssed off enough people, they would stick an obstruction ticket on your vehicle.

[Plymo]

I would say it depends...
If it's got double yellows on the road, no. (They apply to pavements/verges too)

Otherwise yes, it's presumably legal if it's not a pavement, even if the road is No Stopping as that applies only to the road itself.

If it's a pavement, it gets complicated I suppose as it's not specifically banned (except in London and Scotland) but could be an obstruction. So stopping for a few minutes would be OK but leaving it there all day would be taking the piss a bit

Edit:
I see quite a few people pulling over on similar sections on motorway junction overbridges- what are they doing?
Are they nuts and watching the traffic?
Is it just the only wide, convenient spot to stop for something on that section of road?
Or are they really old-school drivers from the 60s who have stopped there, off the motorway to read their map?

Edited by Plymo on Saturday 30th January 10:23

[PArbor1]

I used to park the van and sleep under one in the summer to keep the dogs cool in the day time. I never got woken up to be moved on.

[PArbor1]

I was doing dog security work

[Cat]

Plymo said:

If it's a pavement, it gets complicated I suppose as it's not specifically banned (except in London and Scotland)

Parking on the pavement is not currently illegal in Scotland. There is legislation to make it so contained in the Transport (Scotland) Act 2019 but the relevant parts are yet to come into force.

Cat

[4rephill]

VFK44 said:

When driving along country B roads, there is sometimes a huge Motorway (or dual carriageway) bridge, with a span far greater than the puny road it crosses. The unused part of the span is paved as a giant runoff area next to the B road as it passes under the M-way.

What is the legality of parking on this nice clear area? The public is not having a pavement blocked as the country roads don't have pavements anyway, except under the bridge.

Example (on RHS):
Google Maps

In the example shown above, it doesn't matter if there's a footpath before or after the bridge, the paved section under the bridge, next to the carriageway, is a footpath/pavement section, installed for the safety of any pedestrians who may need to walk underneath the bridge, so they do not have to walk on the carriageway.

Parking a vehicle on the footpath/pavement section under the bridge, which would result in pedestrians having to walk in the road, instead of along the footpath/pavement section, is obstructing a pavement.

As unlikely as it might be, if a pedestrian were to be injured in an accident due to having to step into the road due to your parked car, you would be deemed to be a major cause of the accident.

And, again, as unlikely as it may be, if a pedestrian were to be killed in an accident due to having to step into the road due to your parked car, you could be charged with causing death by dangerous driving.


If the area underneath the bridge has a large area away from the footpath/pavement section, where a vehicle can be parked without obstructing the footpath/pavement, and doesn't cause pedestrians to have to walk in the carriageway, then that would be a different matter.

[poo at Paul's]

There’s a place like this down on the m40 somewhere near Hugh Wycombe I think. Seen it a few times always wondered why there were so many cars parked up, miles from anywhere.
Found out from a client years later it was apparently a pick up from a bus into centre of a London, dived off the motorway, picks up loads of people and goes back on.
But it’s really out in the sticks.

[another-steveb]

If that is where I think it is in Upminster, there is a kind of a track along the side of the road occasionally used by cyclists - it's kind of a half width footpath.

Even though the path was ropey, it was significantly safer than riding along the road at that point... Used to be a 60 limit and there is not really enough room for a car to pass a bike if something is coming the other way, although many tried

[slow_poke]

I thought it was banned in the late eighties/early nineties because the Irish were developing a habit of parking bootloads of ready-mix shake bake under strategically located ones to maximize disruption?

[another-steveb]

slow_poke said:

I thought it was banned in the late eighties/early nineties because the Irish were developing a habit of parking bootloads of ready-mix shake bake under strategically located ones to maximize disruption?

Thank the lord that fear of breaching traffic regulations was the main thing that stopped the IRA in it's tracks

[VFK44]

another-steveb said:

Thank the lord that fear of breaching traffic regulations was the main thing that stopped the IRA in it's tracks

Brilliant answer!

I can see that a car "abandoned" under a motorway might make the rozzers a bit nervous.

You all seem to have evil minds with your suggestions as to what I might get up to under the bridge - it's just that the country lanes have a NSL/60mph limit and nowhere to safely stop, except for entrances to field that look unused, but I bet the old Farmer will appear with his giant tractor if I decided to stop there. I don't seriously think that I'd block anyone brave enough to walk down roads with no pavements or even verges, and the bigger under-bridge apron areas are actually paved with pointy blocks to deter bikes and walkers from crossing them!

Provided there isn't a specific legal ban, I'll use my discretion.

[Matt_E_Mulsion]

eldrich said:

Very popular places over here for people to play their saxophones and other loud instruments, out of the direct sun, out of the rain and away from the rest of the family.

I like this idea. Driving down the motorway on a summer's day with the windows open and hearing a few random notes from a saxophone, completely oblivious to the fact that they are practicing under a bridge.