I live in a newly built housing estate. As is the case with many new developments, the roads are narrower and the level of parking provision is lower than it would have been historically, notwithstanding the fact that households these days often have more than one car. With this being the case in my estate, I frequently find it very difficult to navigate in and out of our driveway as cars are being parked on the road directly opposite the entrance to our house. What can I do? Would I be within my rights to place a traffic cone outside to deter neighbours and visitors from parking there? Who is at fault if my car collides with these illegally parked vehicles?
In private housing estates, drivers must not park in a way that obstructs access to a property. This is provided by law and backed by the Road Safety Authority. The Road Traffic (Traffic and Parking) Regulations 1997 specifically states that a vehicle must not be parked “in a manner that would obstruct other traffic” or “so as to cause a danger to other traffic”.
Obstructing your driveway by parking directly in front of it is breaking the law, but parking across the road may not be and arguing that it prevents reasonable access can be subjective.
Putting up a cone on a public road is illegal unless you have permission from the council – and they are unlikely to entertain you for your own private driveway. It might be worth a try initially, but chances are it will be removed by a neighbour, the council or the offending parker chucking it in his/her boot!
READ MORE
On the question of a collision, the driver of the car would be at fault. However, if the car impacted is parked illegally, liability may be shared by both vehicle owners. Again, this is a very subjective position to be in; were you taking reasonable care when exiting or adopting a ‘take that you blighter’ approach?
Assuming you have talked to neighbours and left a friendly “please don’t park here” note on the car, here are some options you might consider:
Form a residents’ committee and develop a parking management plan. This can be an effective first step. I recently experienced something similar when trying to park before a concert in St Anne’s Park, Raheny. I pulled into a space in a nearby estate that had no line markings and thought I’d been lucky. However, as I got out of the car, a resident in a Hi-Vis vest approached me and explained that parking there was restricted to residents only. I had to drive on, but it shows how local residents can implement a parking management plan.
Contact your local authority and request double yellow lines. First, check if the roads in your estate are taken in charge by the council. If they are, they are treated as public roads and fall under the responsibility of the local authority. If not, they are technically private, and enforcement may not be effective.
Report persistent offenders to either the local traffic warden, (though they may not patrol housing estates) or the Garda, with emphasis on safety rather than inconvenience. It’s a good idea to keep a log of regular incidents and reporting, noting whether delivery vans or the bin lorry also have similar issues with access.
Last word: take care on exiting your drive as the law will not necessarily agree with your sense of what’s fair play. Let common sense prevail.
Pat McGovern is a chartered building surveyor and a member of the Society of Chartered Surveyors Ireland
Do you have a query? Email propertyquestions@irishtimes.com
This column is a readers’ service. The content of the Property Clinic is provided for general information only. It is not intended as advice on which readers should rely. Professional or specialist advice should be obtained before persons take or refrain from any action on the basis of the content. The Irish Times and it contributors will not be liable for any loss or damage arising from reliance on any content
