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Tax by CCTV!

Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
Fines now being imposed for illegal parking as seen from CCTV.
One woman has just been fined for stopping on a double yella for 8 seconds. Time for a set of bent plates i think.

Comments

  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    Whereas it might be argued that the woman you mention was hard done by, I don't have any problems whatsoever with the concept of fines (not taxes) by CCTV.

    If someone breaks the law and park where they shouldn't when they shouldn't, they deserve a fine- end of story.
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    Aladdin wrote: »
    Whereas it might be argued that the woman you mention was hard done by, I don't have any problems whatsoever with the concept of fines (not taxes) by CCTV.

    If someone breaks the law and park where they shouldn't when they shouldn't, they deserve a fine- end of story.
    From what i can gather the woman never left the car ...she had pulled over to drop someone off!
    Fines taxes all the same.
    I can think of quite a few roads where an overhead camera may well see my car as beingparked when the reality is ...i'm waiting for the traffic to move off.
    ONe road has a lot of illegal parkers on it daily and if you don't know this one way system well which has two lanes ...you can end up stuck behind the line of illegals waiting for someone to let you out ...FINE ...according to where the camera is looking at it from.
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    There used to be a workaround, if you covered up your numberplates when you parked, they weren't allowed to tamper with your car. And there's no crime having a parked vehicle not displaying it's number plate, just if its travelling on the roads.

    I think they close that loophole up though. Shame. I've been considering an idea of having a button to switch numberplates, a la The Transporter.
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    Aladdin wrote: »
    Whereas it might be argued that the woman you mention was hard done by, I don't have any problems whatsoever with the concept of fines (not taxes) by CCTV.

    If someone breaks the law and park where they shouldn't when they shouldn't, they deserve a fine- end of story.

    They are very heavy handed in some cases though. For example, if there is a really wide pavement with a bicycle rack, it's easy and not inconvenient for pedestrians or cyclists for me with my motorcycle to park there. I have seen some people with mopeds do just that.

    It's considered a traffic violation though because they see a motorcycle and say 'motor vehicle on footpath fine'. I was advised not to do it because you can get clamped / towed for it, depending on the local council. Even having said that, if it was extremely wide footpath, why is there a crime of someone parking a small car on it. If it doesn't inconvenience anybody, who was it that said "no victim, no crime".

    In any other country I've been to in the world there has been a much more common sense attitude. Although you get cowboys and unlicenced clampers abroad, the police generally (at least in europe and thailand) don't mind so much as long as you're not being a complete tard and blocking an ambulance bay.

    Not that I'm defending those who are daft who park wherever because they're lazy, but defending the rights of people to use a bit of common sense and think 'well, there's nothing there, im not in anyones way... I'll just pull up here'.
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    see this is always the problem we have a great way of ensuring law and order but it gets abused, most drivers will know that there just are those times that playing by the rules makes life impossible mainly due to the overcrowding of roads we have and an 8 second stop does not constitute parking but a temporary stop. so now we will have to declare war on CCTV when it could help catch criminals sad isn't it ?
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    You don't have to declare war on anything. The example Roll has posted is just that- an example. If it becomes the norm for everyone who stops for a few seconds, then there might be a case. And police and wardens have also been known to be highly unreasonable.

    If a bloke is ignoring the law and parking on a double yellow for an hour, inconveniencing traffic, and there are no wardens around he gets away with his antisocial behaviour. If there is a CCTV in the area that records this behaviour and allows for a fine to be issued and discourage similar future incidents, what's bad about that?

    Incidentally there has been CCTV-issued fines in Britain for a long time: those watching bus lanes. And I can certainly vouch for how well they have worked in London. Before they were introduced they were widely ignored.
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    I'm not against CCTV I welcome it but if its misused in this way there will be the sort of row there was over ID cards. bring in CCTV I couldn't ask for more but if those in control abuse it there is going to be plenty of hard feelings towards an otherwise useful tool
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    It's all just another way of raising revenue.
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    It's all just another way of raising revenue.

    I think I heard or read somewhere that most people who contest fines get their money back. If that's true it's probably more about targets than anything.
    I'm not really against this. I think something needs to be put in place to ensure it's not abused, possibly an independant group of people to watch old CCTV or check paperwork, either randomly or those that have been contested. Maybe the people who are against this idea and seem to have nothing better to do than complain about it could do it.
    I think, in general, it's a good idea. In my experience, too many people refuse to take responsibility for their actions when it comes to anything to do with their cars and never consider other people. I agree with Aladdin, if you don't want a fine don't break the law.
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    Good idea in a way cos it does piss you off when people park in the wrong places, but if I get fined! well bring in Mr Loophole! that guys a legend, hes basically taken the criminal "vehicle" justice service for a bunch of wankers.
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