Chesterfield Online Forum
General Category => Chesterfield Discussion => Topic started by: Pete on January 07, 2012, 06:54:44 PM
-
Yes, that old chesnut...
Just saw this in the DT - well worth a read:
"Alan Taylor was slapped with the £70 penalty when he parked outside Revenues Hall in Chesterfield town centre.
The borough council claimed Mr Taylor breached signs which state ‘controlled zone, no parking beyond this point’ – but an adjudicator has questioned the suitability of the signage and thrown out the fine.
In his decision report, adjudicator Roy Rowley explained: “The signs and the absence of any surface markings are confusing and ambiguous.
“The ‘controlled zone’ sign does not signify a restricted area in this off-street car park.
“I am unable to find that the contravention occurred as alleged and the council shall not be entitled to enforce this penalty"
http://www.derbyshiretimes.co.uk/news/local/parking_fine_overturned_1_4116773 (http://www.derbyshiretimes.co.uk/news/local/parking_fine_overturned_1_4116773)
-
Yesterday, stupid me parked on the Donut for quickness just because I wanted to nip across to The Party Shop to collect something. I hardly ever park there and didn't realise that the fee was £2.10 and machine didn't give change. So not only did it cost 60p more than the multi storey, I ended up paying £3 (no change) for parking there for less than 10 mins.
A mistake I won't make again.
-
It would be interesting to know how much more money is taken from us (over and above the cost of parking in the first place) by these machines not giving change. To me, they are taking money for a service that they're not providing.
-
Sorry to rub salt in, Gert, but if you'd parked in the multi storey after 3 o'clock, (Mondays & Tuesdays only) it wouldn't have cost you anything. :(
-
The are robbing bar-stewards for not giving change...I've been caught out a couple of times lately with that too. Also, donut is confusing as some is short stay, some long stay, you have to know which you are in and your bay number.......none of which you are aware of until you've got out of the car, ran to the signs and stood reading it in the pouring rain with kids screaming, before having to run back again to check where you are.
-
Free for 2 hours in the Ravenside, 1 hour Hollis Lane. 60p short stay in some council car parks
-
Well, I've taken on board everyone's comments from their experiences. From now on I'll plan things better and be very choosy. :-[
-
Free for 2 hours in the Ravenside, 1 hour Hollis Lane. 60p short stay in some council car parks
and free for councillors who get a pass to use the Town Centre car parks (yeah I know you only use it when on council business!!!!)
-
Here's a peculiar one - word is that the street parking on Corporation St is going to become pay & display. Thing is, one bay is reserved for the disabled and two others are apparently to go to the creation of a "loading bay" for deliveries to the businesses on that street. That'd leave the three spaces further down, outside Arthur's Graveyard, or whatever it is called, unless more spaces are to be marked out against the by-pass wall. Can anyone make an educated guess about how much it costs to install all the gubbins for all this? I can't see the thing paying for itself, really.
-
You can't usually park anywhere down there, it's full of private hire cars :o
-
Just done some research for another post and I'd completely forgotten that a certain candidate for election had assured us that parking charges would be fairer under a Labour council.
Anyone seen any evidence of it?
-
The free evening parking for late night opening days prior to Christmas was a start; extending this is being costed up for the new financial year.
-
Good. If that applies to the donut, it should be advertised more prominently on the site.
-
The free evening parking for late night opening days prior to Christmas was a start; extending this is being costed up for the new financial year.
How was that 'fair'? It wasn't fair to those people who don't wish to be in the town centre late at night, it wasn't fair for those of us who have to work evenings, it wasn't fair for those visiting the Pomegranate and the Winding Wheel on evenings other than the late night shopping ones?
-
If it extends to other evenings it will suit theatre goers
-
Er, guess who got a parking ticket last week??? :-[
-
For what, (circumstances), don't say parking ::)
-
For what, (circumstances), don't say parking ::)
Sadly yes. Car park opposite Chesterfield Hotel. Only there an hour, paid the fee, mistakenly put wrong reg no. into machine. I've appealed :'(
-
Sorry for the late reply Linda, I'd read your post on my mobile this afternoon, so it didn't flag a new post when I logged on tonight.
I once parked behind the town hall, 80p? for half hour, it was before they made the changes.
Put my reg No in, got back to my taxi, then realised I was driving a different taxi that day, numptee, :o
I went back to the machine and bought another ticket !!
It's a very easy mistake to make. One miss-typed number shouldn't result in a ticket.
If you want a character reference to back your appeal up, let me know ;)
-
For what, (circumstances), don't say parking ::)
Sadly yes. Car park opposite Chesterfield Hotel. Only there an hour, paid the fee, mistakenly put wrong reg no. into machine. I've appealed :'(
Doesn't that one belong to hotel?
-
Good news about the parking fine. It's been waived after my appeal. I just stated the facts and reasons about my mistake. 'Nuther lesson learned! 8)
-
If you mean this one they probably have no powers to impose a fine, though they could clamp you and charge a release fee
(http://i43.tinypic.com/ok4f11.jpg)
-
Result ;)
Always a debatable thing parking on private land.
Apparently the tickets they issue have no legal standing.
-
If you mean this one they probably have no powers to impose a fine, though they could clamp you and charge a release fee
(http://i43.tinypic.com/ok4f11.jpg)
Yes, this was the one. The notice came from an organisation called Parking-Eye.
-
Here you go. Not enforcible ;)
http://whatastate.org.uk/car-parking-penalties (http://whatastate.org.uk/car-parking-penalties)
-
Good find Fly.
Though I don't condone people abusing car parks, some of these car parking firms are just legalised bullies, and people should do more to stand up to them. getting a £50.00 fine for being 5 mins late for example is ridiculous.
-
Here you go. Not enforcible ;)
http://whatastate.org.uk/car-parking-penalties (http://whatastate.org.uk/car-parking-penalties)
Thanks for that Fly. Excellent post. Sounds to me like I had a lucky escape really, though its reassuring to know that I could have ignored the damn thing! >:(
-
It's akin to parking in tesco's in town and going to the match.
'I don't think' they can stop you.
-
Can our council representative please confirm the following in relation to the Labour manifesto pleadge of 'fair car parking charges'?
•
Increased all town centre car parking charges by at least 10p an hour
•
Made what was the daily rate for Sunday parking now Sunday's hourly rate
•
Extended daily charges to now apply until 8.00 pm
•
Increased differential charges for market traders from £3.50 a day on Albion Road to £9.60 (an almost 200% increase!)
•
Made the charge for Ashgate Road car park 60p an hour
•
Increased the multi storey car park tariff from £3.50 to £7.50 (over 100% increase)
By fair did you mean you were going to screw everyone?
-
People will go elsewhere for the free parking at those prices.
-
Can our council representative please confirm the following in relation to the Labour manifesto pleadge of 'fair car parking charges'?
•
Increased all town centre car parking charges by at least 10p an hour
•
Made what was the daily rate for Sunday parking now Sunday's hourly rate
•
Extended daily charges to now apply until 8.00 pm
•
Increased differential charges for market traders from £3.50 a day on Albion Road to £9.60 (an almost 200% increase!)
•
Made the charge for Ashgate Road car park 60p an hour
•
Increased the multi storey car park tariff from £3.50 to £7.50 (over 100% increase)
By fair did you mean you were going to screw everyone?
Bit one sided in that you don't mention Monday to Thursday free parking for Chesterfield residents (majority of the day) and the introduction of cheap half hour for people just dropping in.
-
Surely a town centre needs visitors to survive in these very hard times. So wouldn't free car parking be a major help. Certainly in some areas of the country they have tried this and the results have shown more shoppers turn out as a result.
Oh I forgot its not about helping the town its about putting money in the coffers of local authorities....
-
It's true that it puts money into subsidising council tax that would have to come from elsewhere if there weren't the charges.
I don't believe abolishing them would help parking as there are only a certain amount of spaces which are pretty full on Saturdays,
NEDDC & Bolsover has free parking but they don't have a focal point town centre, each has 4 plus some smaller shopping areas. Bolsover doesn't provide decent toilets anywhere (except at the council offices & I don't know if they open at weekends.)
-
I can't get my head around the new developments on the Donut - do councils not realise that the general populous of Chesterfield have only so much money to spend? Therefore more shops/supermarkets etc. are going to thin this spending money out.So without free parking people are not going to come to Chesterfield no matter what the attraction is. They will only spend what they have got in their wallets between the available outlets, so they will all suffer(shops) ultimately. If you have to pay through the nose for parking, why come in the first place? >:(
-
POST DELETED AT USER'S REQUEST
-
The cost of parking is ridiculous. I now very rarely go to town, if I do, Ill park at riverside and walk into the centre - unless its peeing down, and then I wont bother as I cant be bothered with walking miles from the nearest free parking space in the wet.
Ive said it before, the council has absolutely zero economic sense what so ever. They cant see further than jobs numbers and revenue geneation trhough taxes and other items like the parking meters being discussed here. Obtaining value for money simply does not enter their mind, its too difficult, so frameworks are used to purchase just about everything, as they have zero clue as to what they are doing - they just blindly believe these frameworks offer best value for money.
Could have said the same about supermarkets. 25 years ago the only large one was Presto but all the ones we have now are busy. We have new housing developments springing up everywhere.
-
Bit one sided in that you don't mention Monday to Thursday free parking for Chesterfield residents (majority of the day) and the introduction of cheap half hour for people just dropping in.
Eh? Where and how? Occasionally I have to go into town for work reasons and resent paying when I'm only going to be 10 minutes. I'm not aware that I can park free, how does that work?
And the other big con, machines that don't give change. Want to pay 60p to park but many people won't have the right money so put a 1£ in and you get no change, the technology is there because it happens elsewhere, so clearly its just a money grabbing con, yet the council, through trading standards are meant to check retailers to make sure that they aren't treating the public like that, for example with incorrectly calibrated petrol pumps.
One rule for them and one for everyone else.
-
When I go to the bank I park next to the coach station - costs 20 p for 20 mins
I thought you supported austerity measures.
-
Since when has refusing to give someone the change they are legally entitled to got anything to do with austerity.
I support local authorities working in a cost efficent way, not conning people. I'll repeat, if money is so short, why spend millions on a re-branding project that the public don't even like and doesn't represent Chesterfield.
And that question you ask is so typical of the thinking of a left leaning person. We need money, lets do through some sort of "taxation". As has been mentioned many times, and is now recognised in many studies on retail spending; offer free / cheap parking, the number of visitors go up, there for the number of businesses increases, and shop closures decrease and the overall income for the council then increases, thats why Tescos, Sainsburys, etc are always competing to be cheapest but simple economics is too complicated for those in the public sector.
And I thought you was on holiday.
-
, thats why ....... Sainsburys,...... are always competing to be cheapest
Actually, we don't always!
-
When did charges start applying to the few parking places on South Street by the side of Yeomans?
I missed getting a ticket this morning by seconds.
-
It must be recently Jon - I've not seen it and I often park there when I go to the bank.
I've taken to parking just around the corner by the coach station - 20p for 20 minutes. Just long enough to do the bank run for 20p - suits me. :)
-
20 minutes might just have been long enough.
Theres a machine been fitted right at the bottom but I parked in the very first space next to Yeomans and never saw it or the new signs.
Got back to find a warden was just about to issue me a ticket for non payment but he said as he hadn't started to write it if I shifted the car I was ok. Think the look of total astonishment on my face helped as well !!!
-
Actually, I nearly got a ticket in that little 20p car park for being 5 minutes late... :-?
But, like you, I had a friendly warden who let me off - very friendly guy too. :)
-
Parked on the Donut the other week to nip to one of the local shops.
Surprised at lack of free parking discs for Chesterfield on display.
Although patrolled by the same wardens off street parking is Chesterfield on street is Debyshire.
May have said these before but on moby so too trick to look through
-
When did charges start applying to the few parking places on South Street by the side of Yeomans?
A machine has been installed on Corporation Street - to cover three parking spaces*. How is that possibly cost-effective?
*And not the three that Central Cars take on the pavement outside the museum, either.