Opinion: Obstructive Parking – Not a Police Matter?

Published on: 28 Aug, 2017
Updated on: 29 Aug, 2017

By Martin Giles

As usual, you are in a rush. You slurp the remainder of your coffee, grab your bag and make for the front door. If the traffic is okay you should make it to work on time – just.

You open the door and stop dead in your tracks. Someone has parked right across your drive entrance!

What do you do?

Well not call the police according to a video released by Surrey Police on Twitter earlier this month. It says: “Inconsiderate parking issues aren’t policing matters and should be reported to the council …” (they don’t say which one).

Yep, there are grey areas, but inconsiderate parking issues generally aren’t #PolicingMatters and should be reported to the council pic.twitter.com/q39nucZPar

— Surrey Police (@SurreyPolice) August 10, 2017

Click on the blue and white arrow or “play” symbol to start the video.

Really? Even when that parking traps you in your own home? Not getting to work is bad enough but imagine that you had a family member in need of urgent medical treatment.

And what would the council do?

A spokesperson at GBC said: “Guildford Borough Council enforces parking restrictions on the highway on behalf of Surrey County Council and we only have powers to issue Penalty Charge Notices and not to remove vehicles.”

So there we are, someone from the council may come and stick a ticket on it! That wouldn’t really cut it for me.

Why are things like this? Surely being denied your freedom of movement like this should be considered a serious matter?

But we have to remember that both the police and the councils are under ever increasing financial pressure. They are constantly looking for cost cutting measures including divesting themselves of responsibilities we might take for granted are theirs.

I think we can all understand that where inconsiderate parking is not denying a right of way it is less of a priority and a ticket might be a proportionate response but surely in the example publicised by the police it is a case, thankfully rare, where police action is required.

If it is not an additional offence to park in this way it should be. A ticket is not sufficient. The car should be removed and the driver brought to book and made to pay the costs.

Coincidentally, a similar situation occurred at Effingham this week where a vehicle was used to block an entrance to playing fields where Gypsies and Travellers were encamped without permission.

Effingham Playing Fields entrance blocked by a car.

Evidently, the police were on the scene within minutes, quite correctly, to diffuse the situation and got the vehicle moved.

Isn’t that what we should expect them to do for all of us?

See also: Letter: Why Haven’t Councillors Properly Defined Responsibilities For Parking Enforcement

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