To whom it may concern,
My name is Samantha Paterson and I am one of the local Police Community Support Officers that covers the area of Bitton and Boyd Valley.
I believe that you are aware that there have been many complaints over the last few weeks, with regards to parking on the pavement outside the Sports club. Due to the complaints that we are having we are looking to positively deal with offenders who are committing an offence, when parking on the pavement and obstructing the path way so that pedestrians cannot pass the parked vehicles.
This is not only inconsiderate but is in fact illegal and we can deal with this by means of a £50 fine. Should we feel that the offending vehicle is in fact committing an obstruction we can ticket it as such and have it removed, and in some cases the driver can be issued with 3 endorsable points on their licence, should the parking be considered as dangerous.
Within the Avon and Somerset Constabulary area local authorities may operate their own policies with regards to parking.
Section 137 Highways Act 1980 states that it is an offence to wilfully obstruct the highway– A highway includes a footway, bridleway, carriageway, bridge, cycle track over which the public have a right of way on foot or with vehicles.
Wilful obstruction of the highway
An offence maybe committed if anyone without lawful authority or excuse wilfully obstructs the highway. An obstruction on the road includes:
• Vehicle parked in a dangerous position
• Skip causing an obstruction or in a dangerous position
• An obstruction of the pavement – causing pedestrians to enter the highway in order to pass the obstruction
• Any other impediment to the free flow of traffic
If the parking offence is not causing a significant obstruction or placing other road users in danger then these offences will usually be dealt with by Civil Enforcement Officers who operate on behalf of the Local Authority.
However, if there is an immediate significant obstruction that is placing other road users and/or pedestrians in danger then you must call 999 for immediate police attendance.
Where a local authority has a Traffic Regulation Order (TRO) or have signs put up they can enforce parking on the pavement. However, where there are no signs or a TRO then the Police may take immediate action based on the significant obstruction or danger being placed on other road users or pedestrians.
Where appropriate the Police will work in partnership with the local authority and/or partners to problem solve longer term parking issues i.e. volume of vehicles, vehicles causing an on-going frustration or annoyance that is not causing a significant obstruction or placing other road users in danger.
We notice that signs have been put up on one side of the club and we are advised by local residents that this has in fact helped this last weekend, however these signs are only on one side of the club house. I would like to ask you if you could put similar signs up on the other side of the club house, to help us in this matter. We will be attending the location this coming weekend and the subsequent weekends to ticket offending vehicles.
We would also like to attend your next committee meeting, to discuss how we can work together to deal with this issue.
I look forward to hearing back from you,
Yours Sincerely

Samantha Paterson
On behalf of the Bitton and Boyd Valley Beat Team