The law in this area is hopelessly complex and no one understands it properly! I say that with some confidence because campaigners don’t agree amongst themselves and I have seen the guidance notes given to my local police and that is wrong as well.
So…. test your knowledge in this quiz and then consider getting your local police and councilors to take it. In each of the questions below you will be presented with a situation shown in both a photograph with an accompanying description. There is enough information given in all cases for someone knowledgeable in parking law to determine in each case. In some cases multiple offenses may have been committed. In some the police and civil enforcement offices have different powers. For some questions you will be asked to respond separately for a number of vehicles. In each instance please answer the following questions:
Are any offenses being committed, if so then what offenses and who can do anything about it, the police or the civil enforcement officers. To be clear you are not being asked to comment on whether the penalty is likely to be applied. This is purely a test of your knowledge of the law. You need to know that Ipswich has opted for ‘de-criminalised parking enforcement’, but that Suffolk Coastal District has not. Kesgrave and Grange Farm are in Suffolk Coastal.
To check the answers for a question you just need to hover over the picture for about 2 seconds and the answer should show up as a ‘hover-over’.
Caudwell Hall Road, Ipswich
This car is parked across the pavement outside a post office/coop on Cauldwell Hall Road, Ipswich. There are double yellow lines. The paved area to the right belongs to the shop where there is room to pass. It is 12noon Saturday
Cauldwell Hall Road, Ipswich
Mill Road, Cambridge
A van stops to unload and parking on the pavement on double yellow lines by a litter bin outside a post-office. People can get by with their shopping as long at they turn sideways and take turns in either direction.
Mill Road, Cambridge
Bell Lane, Kesgrave
This car is parked on the pavement on a share-use path on Bell Lane in Kesgrave. There is good clearance to the side and there are no lines. It is a Sunday 3pm.
Bell lane, Kesgrave
Crabbe St, Ipswich. Q1
These two cars are parked in Crabbe Street Ipswich. There is about 800mm clearance between them. There are no yellow lines.It is 3pm Saturday and no one around. Please answer for both the BMW on the road and for the Volvo on the drive.
Crabbe Street, Ipswich
Crabbe Street, Ipswich. Q2
These two cars are parked in Crabbe Street Ipswich. There is about 800mm clearance between them. There are no yellow lines.It is 3pm Saturday and there is a woman with a ‘walker’ walking around the car in the road. You can actually see her head if you look closely. It is 3pm Saturday. Please answer for both the BMW on the road and for the Volvo on the drive.
Crabbe Street, Ipswich
Freehold Road, Ipswich
This car is parked on Freehold Road, Ipswich. It has it front two wheels up on a raised platform which is at pavement level and also has two wheels on the pavement. Sunday 5pm.
Freehold Road, Ipswich
Camden Road, Ipswich
This van is parked blocking the pavement entirely in Camden Road, Ipswich. 3pm Wednesday.
Camden Road, Ispwich
St John’s Road, Ipswich. Three questions.
These cars are parked on St John’s Road, Ipswich, the blue car is on the road marked with a single yellow line, the red one is on the pavement opposite a double yellow, the black one is on parked fully on private land belonging to the shop. The sign near the single yellow says ‘8am-6pm Mon-Fri. The photo was taken at 4pm on Tuesday. Please answer for all three cars.
St John’s Road, Ipswich
Gladstone Road, Ipswich.
The vehicle is fully on the pavement next to double yellow lines on Gladstone Road, Ipswich. Thursday 6pm.
Grange Road, Ipswich
Britannia Road, Ipswich Q1
A Jaguar is parked with two wheels up on the raised platform. There is a single yellow line and a notice saying ‘monday-friday 8am – 6pm’. It is Monday 11am on a school day.
Jaguar on a raised platform with a single yellow line
Britannia Road, Ipswich Q2
A Jaguar and a Mercedes car are each parked with two wheels up on the raised platform. There is no room to cross. There is a single yellow line and a notice saying ‘monday-friday 8am – 6pm’. It is Sunday 3pm.
Britannia Road, Ipswich
Pedestrian Liberation 
Huh that aint a qwiz ther wurnt any qwestons to anser!
I think you’ve made a fundamental mistake. De-criminalized parking enforcement relates to the enforcement process, the contravention of a traffic order is still a criminal offence thanks to ss.5 & 6 RTRA 1984.
Haven’t re read the law right now, but I seem to remember that there is something to say that the offence cant be enforced by police AND Highway Authority, but I think subject to that, the Police can still use FPN’s (or report to the CPS in the usual way)
In the last two pictures, how can you state that they are parked on ‘a raised crossing’? There are no ‘studs’ showing the extent of the crossing (stop line) nor are there zebra markings. What differentiates this from a speed ramp?
A raised crossing runs from pavement to pavement to allow people to cross on the level whilst also slowing traffic. A speed hump does not extend from pavement to pavement. The local police agree that it is a raised crossing but do nothing about it.
Because the raised area is the same level as the footpath and connects to it (no gap between footpath and the raised roadway, it’s classified as a dropped curb for enforcement purposes and as such the police can ticket it.
Police CAN issue FPNs for parking offences, although many choose not to and will use the “decriminalised” excuse for not doing so. That’s sheer laziness IMHO.
It doesn’t help that the police are amongst the worst offenders for breaching yellow lines and/or pavement parking.