I was just dropping by Chapel Street in Cheadle to deliver a letter about our work to improve parking enforcement in the villages and what do I see? A parking attendent handing out tickets right outside his door.
Great to see the campaign is starting to pay dividends – now to keep it going and make a real difference in Gatley and Cheadle.
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Hi Lisa,
I’m sorry you feel you got ticketed unfairly. I’d suggest you appeal to Steve Thompson at Stockport Traffic Services.
However, I can promise you that any money raised from parking fines goes on funding the traffic warden service.
| 3 |
Same problem;
just got a complete brush-off to my appeal, didn`t even attempt to address the issues that I raised.
I`m sure that there must be a statute on the amount of notice to be given for changing parkin restrictions.
Copy of my email to Mr. Thompson;
Ref.: PCN No.: SMO127772A
Car reg.: AJ55 TDO
Address : 28 Springfield Road,
Gatlet.
SK8 4PE
On 02/03/2011 I parked in a marked bay on Chapel St., Cheadle.
On returning I found that I had been issued with a penalty for parking in a `residents only` bay.
I have parked legally on this road 2 or 3 times a week for the last 10 years.
Apparently the parking restrictions had been changed some 2 weeks earlier to `Residents Only`
My ojections are:
1. It is unreasonable to expect drivers to notice a change in restriction signage , when the only signs are mounted some 8` from ground level.
2. Even though I have parked regularly on this road I have not seen any prior warnings of this change, or any warnings after the restrictions had been changed. I therefore believe that there were insufficient warning signs, none at all or that there were there at an inappropriate time or length of time.
On 4th March I spoke to a Trafic Warden, who had just returned from 2 weeks leave, and he admitted that he had not been advised of any change in restrictions and had not seen any warning signs.
I also spoke to a local shop keeper ( on the corner of Chapel St. ) who thought that there may have been warning signs of the change, but only for one prior weekend. This in itself is unfair on those drivers who only park on this road during weekdays.
Also I could find no obvious warning notifications on Stockport Council`s web site.
I would appreciate your comments.
Graham Fowler
| 4 |
Snap! I was sneakily caught out on 23 March and here is the story….
WHAT ESSENTIALLY SAID IN THE APPEAL AGAINST MY PARKING TICKET (VIA THEIR ONLINE FORM, SO A RECORD IS NOT AVAILABLE)
I have a blue invalid parking badge issued by yourselves and all disabled bays in the car parks adjacent to Chapel Street were occupied, some without a disabled badge, so, without change for the meters, I parked for approx. 20 minutes on Chapel Street, believing it was still a 30 minute parking zone. I displayed my blue badge anyway. When I saw the parking ticket, a resident advised me that the parking zones in the street had been changed to allow only residents. I am rarely able to visit the Cheadle village centre now and suggest that this was a genuine mistake.
MY FURTHER COMMENTS AFTER A SWIFT REJECTION OF MY APPEAL BY THE PARKING DEPARTMENT
I had no reason to read the parking restrictions in Chapel Street, believing there was still a 30 minute waiting limit in place.
Without accepting that any parking fine should be upheld, I suggest that parking in marked resident only bays in Chapel Street does not constitute any danger and therefore the £70 level fine was not appropriate (rather the £50 level fine).
It is suggested that a zero tolerance, insensitive-to-all mitigating circumstances, £70 in all cases policy is adopted by this Parking Department to help justify their jobs.
I will attend a hearing before the independent adjudicator, even though it is difficult for me with deteriorating terminal mesothelioma on my left lung, because I always challenge insensitive bullies.
| 5 |
Hi All,
I too got nowhere with my appeal, Stephen Thompson had his signature on the letter, obviously no phone number, so I rang the switchboard and asked for his direct number – got through and he was incensed that I had obtained his number!!
He was rude, tried to tell me there is a different traffic warden everyday there so they would not be familiar with residents and none residents (Ok, so they have to do inductions to the area everyday with each new warden, Health and Safety etc, yeah right!). He said I should not have expected the warden to ask if I knew the restrictions had changed. He also knew nothing about my appeal yet his signature was on the letter that refused my appeal!! He told me they put A4 Signs on lamposts about a month before and advertised in Stockport Times. Of course he was assuming everyone in the borough gets a delivery of Stockport Times and that when we visit cheadle, we go out of out way to look at lamposts!! I have paid the fine, however, I have issued a formal complaint to the council about the way he spoke to me on the telephone. Apparently they did advertise the changes – a year ago…If you were not visiting a year ago, are you supposed to be psychic? If the comments on here are anything to go by, they are making a packet on innocent, law abiding people visiting the village.
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Also, I forgot to say, its no consolation that my parking fine goes to funding the traffic warden service, clearly not run by people who possess an ounce of common sense. I drop and pick my children up from Cheadle Catholic Schools daily, I park considerately, away from school and walk with my 4 children, rain, hail or snow. There are many inconsiderate parents, some with one child who park on the yellow lines because they do not want to walk far to school. The laughable thing is, the wardens turn up the odd time, usually afternoon about 3pm, stand there for 10 minutes, no one parks on the lines, then they trot off and everyone parks there as the kids come out at 3:25 – perhaps someone should tell the council that if they permanantly positioned a warden there morning and afternoon, they would probably make hundreds of pounds daily from people who actually do flout parking restrictions!
Dave, if I were you I would contact the local press, let them now the appalling treatment you have been subjected to by the council, its bad enough for able bodied people not suffering with illness, however, people with an illness and a disabled badge, its disgusting, good luck with your appeal.
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Iain Roberts and Pam King are supportive on this and talking to the parking people, so I’ll wait to see the outcome.
| 8 |
Queried this today and got the following answer from Iain Roberts:
“Had a chat with the leader of the council about this last night.
We’re not going to get the tickets cancelled, I’m afraid – the Council is pointing out (and they are right, unfortunately) that the tickets were legally given so there’s really no grounds to get that changed.
However, my argument about the signage has, I think, been accepted and there should be something clearer put up to draw peoples’ attention to the change in regulations.”
No mention of mitigating circumstances (nothing stopping them there) or the fact that they wrongly slapped a £70 fine on me anyway. Watch this space…
| 9 |
Yes,
I had a similar email telling me they would not rescind the ticket charge, however, its interesting they are not actually willing to identify and prove the actual time they put notices up in the area or the local newspapers, if it was last year, surely that is not considered acceptable.
I think we all made the same point about the signage and we all cannot be wrong, good luck if you carry on appealing it, it is a travesty…
Keith Holloway
T: 07881 386347
E: cllr.keith.holloway@
stockport.gov.uk
Pam King
T: 0161 483 2531
E: cllr.pamela.king@
stockport.gov.uk
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All good and well parking restrictions, however, when people have visited Cheadle village for years and parked in the allocated bays on Chapel Street with a maximum hours parking time – have not been informed it has changed, with only one small sign way above eye level. It is a little unfair. I parked there today with my children, a traffic warden stood and watched me, I was completely unaware restrictions had changed, would the warden not have been better placed to have a word to let me know the restrictions had changed rather than issue a notice? I do not flout parking restrictions, the sign was at the entrance to the road, I parked in the middle bay and walked in the opposite direction, therefore there was no sign for me to observe or information that parking facility on the road had changed. As a council tax payer, I would at least expect some kind of information or the warden who was stood there to have the decency to let me know. Good for the council, squeezing even more money out of the community to spend on holidays and expenses.