Desparate for cash

That is a description of Barnet Council. There is some dastardly plan to get parking tickets back up to the "expected" amount. A target but not a target. Mr Mustard thinks that the plan, which unusually hasn't yet been leaked, or provided under FOI (where he is seriously in governance's bad books for being so prolific and they have hatched a cunning plan which will blow up like one of Baldrick's boils in their faces). The plan to get PCN numbers up doesn't for once revolve around CPZs and car parks but on out of hours enforcement when people make a small and understandable mistake in the dark. Here is a traffic warden dishing out a ticket in the parade of shops near Barnet Odeon. The slip road is called Western Parade.

The handbrake on the blogger bus was engaged; traffic lights at red.

This was on Mr Mustard's way back from Cafe Buzz on 1 November from an extra showing of the short film about Barnet - The Billion Pound Gamble. In the centre of the picture you can see a traffic warden (still wearing his helmet which is a contract breach, no penalty charge notice should be issued by a traffic warden wearing a crash helmet) dishing out a PCN at 8.10pm. Mr Mustard couldn't see what the problem was so popped along there today - he did not park in the same spot!

Here is what he found.

Now to be fair to the motorist lines should be clear and unambiguous. These cannot be described as clear. They are alongside a dropped kerb which is helpful in identifying that feature but at night, under all those leaves, which were worse the other day when Mr Mustard drove along this parade but did not stop, could easily be missed by a motorist. The terminating T line appears to be defective to boot.

The crossover is there to help people cross the road to the bus stop on the opposite pavement.

Now would anyone agree that there is a coherent set of double yellow lines here? They look like ones which are being left to fade away as no longer required. It is no surprise that cars at both ends are over these lines although they have left the crossover clear.

 So the only answer in the dark is

Hey, let's be careful out there.

Don't let the sneaky baskets fill their coffers by giving you a parking ticket on a dropped kerb. There is no parking any time of the day or night on a dropped kerb like this one.

Yours frugally

Mr Mustard