Traffic warden caught parking on double yellow lines

Updated
Traffic warden parked on double yellow lines
Traffic warden parked on double yellow lines



A traffic warden in Stockport was caught on camera, leaving his own car on double yellow lines. He had spotted a car that had been illegally parked in a disabled bay in Arthur Street in Stockport, so pulled up on double yellow lines and popped out to give him a ticket. He probably thought nobody would notice. He was wrong.

The Manchester Evening news published the pictures, and contacted Stockport Council, which told the newspaper the warden should have found somewhere legal to park if possible, and that it would "ensure the appropriate action is taken to avoid a repetition".

The rules

He's not the first traffic warden to be caught on camera on double yellow lines. Over the years a number of wardens have featured in local papers and Facebook pages, parking illegally in all sorts of unexpected places.

However, bizarrely, they are not breaking the rules. They are allowed to park on yellow lines while carrying out their duties - although they have to move on as soon as they have issued the ticket, and they are encouraged to try to find somewhere better to park if possible.

The Stockport warden has presumably been taken to task over his decision to park on the double yellow lines when there was plenty of space behind him to park legally - rather than for parking on the lines full stop.

Reaction

The rules don't stop motorist finding the situation frustrating. Each time a passer-by catches a warden on camera parked illegally, and shares the picture, it is greeted with howls of outrage.

After the Stockport warden's parking was aired on social media, a number of Facebook users branded him hypocritical, and accused him of "Double yellow standards." Other users said they had seen this sort of thing before - and some published their photos of other wardens' cars parked illegally.

Some argued that it was unfair to let one group of council workers park illegally, while others - such as carers - have to park legally regardless of any inconvenience.

However, there were also those who defended the move, including one user who said: "Totally on the traffic warden's side. You get those gits parking in disabled spaces traffic warden dude".

There were those who pointed out that without this right, traffic wardens would be unable to ticket many inconsiderate drivers - simply because they couldn't find a legal parking space in time.

But what do you think? Do you think wardens should be able to park illegally in order to ticket people who are parked illegally? Or do you think it's unfair? Let us know in the comments.

Trying to Get Out of a Parking Ticket? There's a Robot for That
Trying to Get Out of a Parking Ticket? There's a Robot for That



Advertisement