People before cars in Lincoln please!
When is a pedestrian area not a pedestrian area? When it's in Lincoln apparently.
If you've ever visited Brayford Wharf in Lincoln, you'll know that it is designed to encourage people to use the river side for leisure including a multi-screen cinema, several bars and a number of places to eat.
The area is a great asset for Lincoln and I wasn't surprised to see how busy it was this bank holiday, with people using all the places on offer and just bimbling (sorry old military phrase from my days in the Falkland Islands, it means going for a ride or walk just for something to do - there's not a lot to do in the Falklands you know!)
Anyway enough war stories, with all these people walking about enjoying themselves, it's a really good idea to prevent cars etc driving around or parking on the wharf area. Unfortunately, without anybody policing it, the wharf has a constant stream of cars moving around and parking up where they like despite the ‘not at any time' signs. It's still the police's job to enforce parking laws by the way, just in case you were wondering.
Whilst sitting in one of the eateries I watched a driver have the bloody cheek to blast his horn at a young couple who had the nerve to be walking along the pedestrianised area in front of his car! The couple scurried out of the way and the driver accelerated away as if to confirm his absolute right not to be delayed by these damned pedestrians! If it had been me I wouldn't have done any scurrying, I would have given the bloke in question the reverse of the Churchill victory sign!
Stupid thing is, there is a hotel in the middle of the wharf area and the only access is along the pedestrian walking area, so these cars are allowed to be there, they just aren't allowed to park, which several were also doing, thereby restricting the areas that were safe for pedestrians to walk along. Completely barmy piece of planning I say! Come on Lincoln City pedestrians before cars please!
Comments: 2
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Pot, kettle, black!
Yes it is down to the police OR THE COUNCIL to ensure vehicles don't park there. Clearly it would the city is not doing a very good job here.
Of course at least Lincoln actually has some traffic wardens to enforce parking restrictions.
Heaven forbid that a town existed where there were no traffic wardens employed by the council and where the only form of parking enforcement was a guy from Grantham doing an odd visit once or twice a month.
MY COUNCIL does not employ people to enforce parking restrictions so is it any wonder that the town centre is a danger to those on foot and in cars on Saturday mornings.
So please.
Before you critisise other authorities, get your own house in order.
Comment modified)
In Lincolnshire it is ONLY the police, or the traffic wardens they employ, who can enforce the parking laws. The council can only do the job in their own car parks and have no powers to enforce what is still a criminal offence in Lincolnshire.
Given the police's reluctance to doing parking enforcement and worse still their complete unwillingness to employ another traffic warden when one retires (as in the case of Spalding and Holbeach) or simply quits, we are all stuck with the same problem.
We have been trying to get the Chief Constable to go through the process of de-criminalising parking, thereby allowing it to become a civil enforcement activity, for well over 12 months now. Unfortunately, some councils, one of these being Lincoln City, have refused to sign up to this as they are concerned about the cost of enforcement against the return from fines. This concern is justifiable, but the alternative is virtually no enforcement at all and a free for all, as the police seem to be accountable to nobody but themselves and they probably have no targets government set targets for parking enforcement!
My point about Brayford Wharf is more to do with the high profile of it as a tourist attraction and a place that attracts a huge number of people including many small children running around enjoying both the location and in the case of this weekend, the good weather. As such I would hope that the police would make a greater effort to look after the public's safety. I believe the council has a moral duty to keep up the pressure on the police to do this as they are unwilling to see parking de-criminalised at this time.
Thanks for the feedback always nice to know somebody is reading my rantings.
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