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Parking Fine Celebrations
Thu 1st Jan 2004, 01:57 PM Reported
by: onthespot
Scores of motorists who decided to leave their vehicles in town whilst joining in the New Year celebrations were faced with fixed penalty fines on New Years morning.
Parking attendant tots up issued tickets in a promenade shelter.
Steve, a care worker for Lancashire County Council said; this is a great start to the New Year.
Onthespot - your online reporter
Do you have a story to tell? Please text or phone 07930717137 or email press@southport.gb.com
The same thing happened last year I believe. You'd think that the Council would order an "amnesty" until say midday.
It would be interesting to know if the wardens are on a special rate as it's a bank holiday and whether or not it would actually be cheaper - as well as being a major benefit to public relations - to give them the day off!
How nice of Sefton Council to cash in on our desire to enjoy ourselves without taking the stupid risk of driving home. It is about time that common sense and community spirit was introduced to Sefton Council who do not appear to have any other interest than maximising their expenses budget.
IT WOULDNT HAVE BEEN A SURPRISE TO ME IF THERE GAVE YOU A SEASONS GREATINGS WITH YOUR TICKET
THEY ARE NOT DAFT THEY KNOW PEOPLE WILL BE LEAVING CARS AFTER DRINKING, BANG THEY GOT YOU BEFORE YOU OPEN YOUR EYES & SAY HAPPY NEW YEAR:( :( :( :(
There should be an Amnesty on parking fines following Saturday nights. I think they have relaxed the rules and now allow up to 11am as free parking on Sunday, so why was that not extended to New Years Day....
I think that is a question to be asked at the next Southport South Area Committee Meeting.
The next meeting is on Wednesday 28th January, 18.30 at Mornington Road Day Centre.
A copy of my email to Ronnie Fearn and to Technical Services follows.....:-
On New Years Day, there were many people who had (sensibly) left their cars in town overnight, only to get to them on New Years Day to find that they had acquired a parking fine.
If the campaign against 'Drink Driving' is to be successful wouldn't it be advisable to declare an 'Amnesty' for vehicles left in town. This would allow the owners time to reclaim their vehicles and drive off happy in the knowledge that Southport REALLY is a FRIENDLY TOWN.
Issuing tickets early on a New Years Day is just kicking people in the teeth. There is lee-way on a Sunday (until 11am) however this hardly benefits the Churchgoers as most C of E services do not commence until 10.45 am (Catholics probably would benefit as their services commence earlier, I believe).
I shall be writing in a similar vein to the Southport South Area Committee to get an answer from the section responsible for the parking regulations and their enforcement.
Yours sincerely
I have submitted this question 'online' to the Area Committee.
Surely the only people to blame here are the motorists themselves.
I presume they left their cars in town overnight as they had been drinking the night before and would of been over the limit when it came to go home. The chances are that they could of been over the limit in the morning aswell.
I think your right Taxi driver it takes longer than a few hours for the alcohol to reduce in the blood , best thing to do is use a taxi its cheeper than a parking ticket :wave :wave :wave
Just a couple of points:
The attendents are not employed by the Royal British Legion, the Earl Haig poppy fund institution.
The attendents are not working on their own initiative. They do not simply turn up for work whenever they feel like it and issue tickets based on their own rules. They are working under the direct (or indirect) instructions of Sefton Council. It is wrong to direct accusations against individual attendents. If any one of them is acting in a fashion not approved of by Sefton Council, then he/she should be sacked by the Council. If he/she remains employed, we, the suffering public (ie VOTERS!) must, therefore, assume that the Council itself approves of the actions they take.
First point. I tried to book a taxi in advance for New Years Eve and was told NO CHANCE.
Second point. These attendants are not very bright and have no discretion.
Third point. Sefton council and these parking tossers are ruining the image of the town and very soon people will stop coming here to shop or be entertained.
Fourth point. Where does all the money raised by these instant fines go to?????
It certainly isnt being spent on the town centre. It looks more like Dodge City these days.
Is it not strange how people assume because it is a holiday or special day, that law local or otherwise should be ignored. Even worse is this attitude toward a person for doing the job they are paid to do. It is insulting to infer that a person who works as a parking attendent is not very bright. The amount of insults on these pages is a show of how low some other peoples intelligences are.
If you park your car anywhere that need a ticket, it is your responsiblity to ensure that the car is removed in time. It is no good moaning about the attendant doing his/her job, it is time people accepted the responisbility for their own actions instead of insulting people for doing a job. Whether we like it or not, the parking laws are there, and we as motorists know and should abide by them.
I wonder if there's another town in Britain that goes on and on and on week in week out (see the Visiter) about parking charges the way people do in Southport? There's always at least one letter in a local rag with the same old gripe "I was only 2 minutes" "it's Christmas" "It will put people off coming to Southport" etc. etc. Why cant people just accept the fact they have broken the rules and pay the consequences. I've had two fines in the past, but just accepted the fact I had to pay it and get on with life.
As for people not coming to Southport anymore due to the parking situation, GET REAL. Do you really believe people wont come anymore because they have to pay to park. If that was the case there'd be a lot of ghost towns in Britain, you can pay three times what we're paying in Southport.
So STOP MOANING, if you've breached the rules then pay the price.:mad:
I reckon we all get the money refunded another way.... Let's see...ummm
I've got it..
We didn't have to do it a while ago, and since then the council has saved much time and money to think of new ways to make it e.g. (ticketing on New Years Eve)
Stop putting ya bin sacks out.. Make'em do their job properly too, just like the traffic wardens want to :rolleyes:
I think that all that we are asking for is a little bit of Peace on Earth and Goodwill to men....
The Police don't want people driving their cars whilst under the influence but there are no provisions made for people to leave their cars without incurring a fine if they do not move it before 8am.
I think that all we are asking for is a little bit of give and take..... Swings and Roundabouts etc.
It really would NOT be so bad if the REST of SEFTON had the same parking regulations as SOUTHPORT. The gripes MIGHT well be less than they are at the moment.....
It appears to be one rule for Southport and an entirely DIFFERENT RULE for Bootle and Crosby (which are ALL PART of the SAME METROPOLITAN BOROUGH).
Do you see what I am getting at..... discrmination against the Southport people by Sefton parking regulations.
I dont see the point;the town today,was like a ghost town,with only a few shops open.Why alienate the sensible people who left their cars overnight and got taxis home,and the few who ventured in to spend a"bob"or two today?It would make for a lot less hassle all round,for parking attendents to be instructed to use a bit of common sense and if the town is empty,go and find a cafe that's open and have a coffee.
the traffic wardens who are employed by sefton council are there to do a job,if they do not do that job correctly then they are at risk of being sacked,why should they risk that just because some people are to lazy or to tight to part with a couple of coppers to park there car,as a taxi driver in southport on news year morning i picked up a few people to take them into town to get there cars and not one of them had a ticket on it.one person said if it had have aticket on it it would have been his own fault,and for the person who was told no chance of ordering a taxi was a load of crap,i work for the biggest taxi firm in southport and we were taking bookings on new years eve.
Please understand that it is NOT the TRAFFIC WARDENS that I am getting at..... it is the fact that the Council should have treated New Years Day as if it were a SUNDAY.... and then at least there would have been some leeway......
If the traffic wardens arn`t employed by the british legion, why do they have british legion badges and use a van that states british legion?.:confused: :confused:
Have you ever tried to read the full regs on the parking meters..... Unless you have VERY GOOD eyesight or crouch down you have difficulty even deciding how much to feed the blasted thing.
All of you. Go to the Clifton at 8am every day and youll see the vultures hanging around waiting for the clock to start. This is why the attendants get bad press. Not because they are doing a job. (which IS very necessary) Its the way they do it, with a smile on their ugly faces. No discretion and Zero tolerance.
This parking scheme is nothing but a Sefton Council money making scam which is ruining the good name of Southport. Simple as that.
Originally posted by liberty Taxis are expensive. People should be allowed drive in and leave their cars on a Sunday or bank holiday morning without being fined.
When you say expensive do you mean expensive as in one of the cheapest in the country, which certainly is what Sefton (Southport) taxis are.
You'd be surprised as to how many people comment on the cheap prices in Southport from people who are not from the area.
When a holiday maker from out of town comes to Pontins in Ainsdale for example and gets a local firm to take them to Lord Street,they cant believe thats its no more than £6 for the distance and time travelled its very cheap indeed:D
The other thing people notice is how quick you can get a taxi in this town compared to other towns/cities etc.
On a busy weekend night most cars take no longer than 15 mins,where as in other towns it can take an hour or more even if you book it,if you dont think its true try getting or phoning a taxi in Manchester at the weekend:p
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