Welcome to Keswick - NOT!

[nedspencer]

Welcome to Keswick – NOT!

I and my family have been regular visitors to the Keswick area for nearly 30 years. However, we will now be visiting areas other than Keswick in the future due to a recent incident which resulted in my receiving a parking notice for parking two inches over the white line – in an empty car park on a cold Winters afternoon!!!

I will pay the fixed penalty notice (reluctantly) but have decided that this ridiculous situation should be brought to the attention of:

- Other visitors to Keswick – beware the car parking attendants!

- Local businesses in Keswick – are you aware you are losing business?
(See the Allerdale Council web site forum)

- Allerdale Council – do the receipts from car parking cover the costs of the Parking Services Department?


I received the Parking Notice in the Lakeside Car Park on the afternoon of Friday 14th January. I had paid for a ticket and was amazed to see the penalty notice on my windscreen on returning to my car. The car park must be capable of taking 500 cars but there were about 15 cars parked there that cold afternoon.

To receive a penalty notice for not parking exactly between the white lines is absolutely crazy. When I raised an objection with the Parking Services Department I was met with the typical bureaucratic response of “rules are rules and must be obeyed”. This, together with the almost military style of the car parking attendants’ uniforms is not what I would call welcoming!!

Maybe in the summer the number of visitors is such that this problem can be ignored. I would have thought that Keswick would try harder to attract visitors in the winter months and that this problem needs to be addressed.

Meanwhile – we will be going to Wales or Yorkshire where hopefully we will receive a warmer welcome.

[Guest]

Stop being such a wet bitch and pay the ticket. If you were jumped by hoodlums you would expect the police to do their job fully there, so stop bitching.

[Guest]

Boo hoo, you got a ticket, quit being such a whiney git and get on with your life. The simple fact that you posted your moaning report shows that you have no life and are not involved in anything that would occupy your time, such as a woman, children, social life, etc. Maybes you could practice parking your car properly.

[nedspencer]

Not sure who you are Mr Visitor / Guest / Keswick Boy ??

I expect you could be a council employee!?!?

You are the first person (out of many I can tell you) with this view

The traffic wardens at Keswick have definitely upset a lot of people

I'll make my feelings known whatever you might think

The more people that know about the "Keswick Gestapo" the better

[~grappa~]

On a visit to Keswick last October I parked in the carpark by Derwentwater. At the ticket machine I saw a large notice stating that I should park within the white lines. I mentioned this to a lady who was also buying a ticket. She was a local, and explained that there had been a problem with the wardens, who were nothing to do with Keswick council, and who applied the car park rules to the letter.

Must admit that when I got back to my car I did make sure that it was not parked over the lines. Later, on our return from our walk around the lake I did see a car parked on the grass in the car park proudly displaying a parking ticket. While that is obviously against the rules I can see that parking just over a white line can easily happen - so the sign warning to be aware of the rule is a good thing.

Coming back to Keswick in 2 weeks. I hope there is some snow about!!!

---------------
~grappa~

[Guest]

It is a sad comment that traffic wardens in Keswick are making it an unwelcoming place. The wardens are nothing to do with Keswick, or employed by Keswick Town Council - they are employed by Allerdale Borough Council based at Workington. I had a run in with one of these wardens when I found a ticket on my car after parking where I have parked for years while making a quick call at our town centre bank. But I have to say I was guilty. I had parked on a single yellow line where parking was only allowed during the winter months - and this was a busy July.

One thing I have noticed. The wardens stick to the letter of the rules at all times of the year. So if a by-law in a car park says you must park between marker lines, then you should do so. Grappa is right about the signs advising carpark users to park entirely within a parking bay. These notices were put up by local businessmen to try to help motorists avoid getting parking tickets.

Ned you are very welcome to com and stay in my B&B at any time. You can then leave your car safely parked outside my front door while you explore the delights of Keswick on foot. You wont need a car to reach all our attractions.

[Guest]

nedspencer

I see you are trying to have your little whine seen in as many places in town as you can, I notice your letter in the Reminder recently. Do you not think the parking bays are marked on the ground for a reason? It’s not a very skilled task to park your car between the lines.

So, Mr Visitor/Guest/Keswick Boy is ‘the first person (out of many I can tell you) with this view’ (that you should stop complaining), surely that’s more than one person. I wish to commend Mr Visitor for his reference to the Parking Attendant just doing his/her job. I know that Allerdale Borough Council have problems recruiting staff due to the threats of violence and other abuse which they receive; the fact that you received a ticket for committing an offence shows that they are doing their job correctly.

nedspencer, you are perhaps fortunate that about sixteen months ago parking offences such as yours became decriminalized. Previously if you had officially disputed your case and lost then you may have received a criminal record. As it stands, if you’d wished to challenge your ticket you could have done so and your case would have been considered; had you lost you would have just had to pay the fine, if you’d won you wouldn’t, instead you chose to spend you time moaning instead of doing something constructive about it.

nedspencer, I hope you enjoy your trip to Wales or Yorkshire. As a side note, I hear that in some parts of the Dales they are introducing restrictions on who may purchase houses in an attempt to reduce the number of second homes and make it possible for people brought up there to buy houses. Maybe this should be considered for Keswick to try and prevent it becoming a retirement home. I’m sure I could also link from this to the potential closure of the Hospital. Increasing average age – increased medical requirements – increased dependency of local facitities – forthcoming removal/closure of hospital and emergency care – further to travel – sale of house.

Ta

(Sorry for going off topic)

[Gill]

What's the bets that 'guest' is a traffic warden...... Thanks to the others for the warnings.... :roll:

[kelvyn]

Gill, I doubt if "guest" is a traffic warden as he/she shows local knowledge and concern about the state of our housing market here in Keswick, plus is a reader of the Keswick Reminder - and I doubt if any wardens live in the town....

[Guest]

very interesting...