Selfish Parkers in Tannsfeld Road

bensonby · Post by **bensonby** » 26 Oct 2009 16:52

of all the bizarre threads on this website this has to top them all....

Trawlerman · Post by **Trawlerman** » 26 Oct 2009 20:13

I think we can do better, stranger?
Any takers?

lambchops · Post by **lambchops** » 26 Oct 2009 21:40

I'm tempted to go and park near the Natwest and see what happens.

I thought Eagle was being facetious at first.

Eagle · Post by **Eagle** » 27 Oct 2009 08:47

It was originally partly tounge in cheek but also I can see many , especially elderly people , would rather the space outside their house be left vacant.
Why is it that the resident has zero rights about parking adjacent to their property ?
I so think fat too many cars . Who actually needs a vehile living in SE26.
Surely would be a nicer experience shopping in SR and walking the adjacent streets if much fewer cars.
Howabout you can only have a car if you have a garage , or of street parking ( excluding dececration of front gardens, they are for flowers not plants )

Ulysses · Post by **Ulysses** » 27 Oct 2009 09:34

I am still not sure if your elderly acquaintances are exctracting the proverbial Eagle or are so far removed from reality it's unreal.

NOW - I can see how they view the unceasing march and encroachment of the automobile as an irritant. I'm sure they remember fondly when cars where rare and something to be excited about. Like the first colour TV on the street I hear the first cars where once quite the status symbol.

However, the cold hard reality of the situation is that the road is part of the Public Highway and falls under the control of the Local Authority. So long as the cars are MOT'd and taxed and not obstructing a drive/parked on double yellows then simply...they haven't got any claim to it. I know you and I know that but someone needs to put these people straight.

Honestly.

BTW - I choose not to own a car and walk everywhere. If it's too far I use public transport. But these ladies need to wake up and smell the coffee.

[I hope my tone isn't too aggressive here but this type of attitude does irk]

Chazza · Post by **Chazza** » 27 Oct 2009 10:46

Eagle wrote:Who actually needs a vehile living in SE26.

We did try to live without a car and managed a whole year before caving in. Public transport in SE26 might well be brilliant by national standards, but it's still no competition for a car.

Trawlerman · Post by **Trawlerman** » 27 Oct 2009 16:49

Of course you can actually live without a car! [The air is still free ...but still being dirtied by petrol and diesel fumes]
More should really go for it [greatly reduced car use]

Public transport is no competition to the car...?

Its all according to the way you look at it.
Throw in bikes and your legs [if you still have use of them]...And this is a no-brainer from a number of angles.

Health, fitness, the environment, global warming, deaths and injuries on the roads...The only real drawback is personal convenience and force of habit...

The car is an addiction that has the whole of society hooked. We should be gradually, gently but firmly, weaned away from it.

dickp · Post by **dickp** » 27 Oct 2009 18:10

I'll remember the important lesson on how I don't need a car next I'm catching the one bus per day to the village in Derbyshire to visit my family, or enduring a 20-mile cab ride to see friends in North Wales or rural Northamptonshire.

I also hope they accept dogs on the bus, and don't mind me knocking the locals out of the way with my suitcase, dog blanket and general paraphernalia.

Mind you, I guess that means I can't visit anyone on Christmas or new year's eve, or whenever there are engineering works.

Or perhaps I should just continue to use public transport for some journeys, and my car for others – a bit like I do now.

lambchops · Post by **lambchops** » 27 Oct 2009 19:34

dickp wrote:
I also hope they accept dogs on the bus, and don't mind me knocking the locals out of the way with my suitcase, dog blanket and general paraphernalia.

Was this stuff part of what contributed to Sydenham's high rating in the stats posted by The Landlord?

Eagle · Post by **Eagle** » 28 Oct 2009 08:23

Of course more dificult without a car in the country ( though not impossible ).
You do not need a car in SE26 and if you are going to rural Argyll , get a train to Glasgow Central then bus or hire car or taxi.

dickp · Post by **dickp** » 28 Oct 2009 09:18

No, I won't.

Having done the maths, it is cheaper, more convenient, and a damned sight more pleasant to own an low-mileage old car than to constantly rely on public transport for long-haul journeys.

When there are two of us - or more - (which there normally are), the maths works even more in favour of a car.

People can wail how evil cars are till the cows come home. I ain't interested.

Ulysses · Post by **Ulysses** » 28 Oct 2009 09:39

dickp wrote:
People can wail how evil cars are till the cows come home. I ain't interested.

That did make me smile. I do admire your strength of feeling. As I mentioned I choose not to own a car but I don't have a problem with them. I don't want this to descend into a 'school run' debate but I do think some people kick the a*se out of it.

I live on a road with 'on street' parking. Given the amount of Victorian/Edwardian roads in Sydders I am sure I am not alone. A good number of houses around me have husband, wife and 2 grown children. Occasionally there's the odd trade vehicle also. 4 or 5 cars to a household is a bit much, in my own humble opinion.

Of course, they're all road legal so they can have as many as they want. I don't see 4 cars as a sign of wealth though. I see it as vulgar and un-neccesary...

But maybe that's just me.

It doesn't take much for this road to get chock full. Especially when everyone is hell bent on parking right outside their gate - even if it means you use 1.5 spaces worth of space (if that makes sense?).

Chazza · Post by **Chazza** » 28 Oct 2009 09:59

Trawlerman wrote:Public transport is no competition to the car...?

Its all according to the way you look at it.
Throw in bikes and your legs [if you still have use of them]...And this is a no-brainer from a number of angles.

I do cycle to work every day and also walk whenever my destination is within 30 mins' walk. However, I have family and friends in Yorkshire, Oxfordshire, Essex, Devon and Lancashire to name a few. Visiting any of them by public transport is a logistical nightmare, plus when you get there you find that they're really not blessed with anything like the standard of public transport enjoyed by Zone 3-dwelling Londoners.

Then there are trips to out-of-town retail centres (town planners' biggest mistake in my view), trips during the night when the only public transport is the night bus, times when you need to carry heavy items, trips to the dump etc. where you just can't use public transport.

Trawlerman · Post by **Trawlerman** » 28 Oct 2009 15:51

I know that cars are handy in today's world...where often the world revolves around the car and its utility. And things have been arranged so that under many circumstances [remote rural areas etc] the car seems to be absolutely necessary. This is true...But this is also a shame.

These points seem obvious. But, it is also a shame that some people don't seem to be interested in some rather unfortunate consequences of our addiction to the box on wheels...
Of course its not cars that kill [around 3000 per year in UK] and maim and injure [tens of thousands], its not cars that help to cause bad health, noise,
global warming, congestion, frustration etc. Its not the mechanism...It is the mechanism + the human being who uses it .

I never said all car owners should just give up...But, I am saying it is right and necessary that many people should moderate their addiction.
Switch off the Paxman and cut down on zooming [or trundling] around in their fume-belching and dangerous box on wheels.

Perhaps if more people took up these suggestions then we may all start living at a more human level, there may begin to be a more joined-up holistic approach to transport, there will be far less blood spilled on our roads and our environment will be better all-round.

Eagle · Post by **Eagle** » 28 Oct 2009 16:17

Well said Trawlerman, guess this ties in with the posts on the proposed improvements of Sydenham Road. Also car lobby against this.

ALIB · Post by **ALIB** » 28 Oct 2009 17:12

Eagle wrote:Well said Trawlerman, guess this ties in with the posts on the proposed improvements of Sydenham Road. Also car lobby against this.

I disagree. I think there has been a lot of misinformation about the improvements from certain sectors of the community.

The Sydenham Road improvements would be a win/win/win situation.

1) Pedestrians would be better accomodated. Safer crossing points, larger pavements and a better environment to shop
2) Traders would benefit from increased footfall, and a vastly improved High Street.
3) Lastly, the projected traffic flow will show a slight increase in throughflow numbers, with no reduction in parking spaces

There is no reason whatsoever why the 'car lobby' should be against such a scheme.

(sorry to be a pedant)

Trawlerman · Post by **Trawlerman** » 28 Oct 2009 17:23

I am for people. I am very much against too much car use ...especially in UK towns...not against car users [they are people...I hope]
[I am very much against the 'car lobby' and associated childishness]

We need to aim for a more human [and humane] environment. Anything that inches us towards this goal should be welcomed.

dickp · Post by **dickp** » 28 Oct 2009 18:36

If you want to see car addicts, you should visit the provinces.

My parents will get in the car to drive to the post box. Mind you, it is a mile down the road. And they wouldn't dream of walking to the shops (a 25 minute walk).

I think us londoners are among the best in the country for moderating our car use. After all, we have a choice.

It's not that people who live outside London are inherently evil, it's just that the population density is often so low, it's just not profitable to make public transport work.

ALIB · Post by **ALIB** » 28 Oct 2009 18:47

conversely, i think you will find a lot of opponents to (potential) additional cars are already owner/drivers themselves. (can i say: pot and kettle?)

We are very fortunate to have such a good public transport system. I find it slightly irritating when people moan about a bus/train being nearly 5 minutes late. Or perhaps humourous. These people would never survive in the wilderness of Surrey or Berkshire

Trawlerman · Post by **Trawlerman** » 28 Oct 2009 18:51

You may be right re the provinces...But I do know of people in London who think nothing of jumping in their motor to just 'pop round the corner'..
Mad, I know...But true!

Of course people are not 'inherently evil'...Just sometimes misguided / a bit selfish / unaware / sometimes ignorant...

Also...We should try and get away from the out-dated and narrow notion of 'profit' ...
And begin to understand a broader notion...That of society and its 'profit'.

The old ways are now leading us to disaster... globally, and eventually and inevitably...locally.

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Selfish Parkers in Tannsfeld Road