Free Traffic Legal Advice

This one may be hopeless: 12R in Camden. But maybe?

Yesterday I parked on a Blue Badge in a permit-only residents' bay in what it turned out to be the Camden Green Zone:

Google Maps

I know my ignorance of the zone borders is poor defence. Still, it didn't occur to me that the Green Zone stretches so far from Bloomsbury centre. To be honest, I spent 15 minutes driving around and looking for a parking space when travelling with my disabled child to the Great Ormond Street hospital, and this was the nearest place I could find.

PCN was issued promptly, within minutes of leaving the car:

View the PCN

Are there any grounds for a challenge? Or at least for having the contravention code changed to 19R, which entails a lower penalty, given that a Blue Badge was displayed?

Big thanks in advance.

What was the purpose of parking there. Camden does sometimes use discretion in the green zone, especially near the boundary and if there is good mitigation.

I drove to the Great Ormond Street Hospital with my disabled child. After dropping off her and her mum at GOSH (on a street - no parking there), I had to park somewhere and rush back to her appointment. As unusual as it sounds, this was the first empty parking bay I spotted after 10-15 minutes of driving around the hospital.

I hope this will be accepted.

The contravention is correct so you can't argue for a wrong contravention (code 19 would only be applicable anyway for an expired permit). No details on the PCN can be changed by the way - only challenged if wrong.

Thanks for explaining.

Camden does allow BB parking in resident and pay bays outside the green zone.

Have a look at this case where they cancelled and also conerns a disabled child.

https://www.ftla.uk/civil-penalty-charge-notices-(councils-tfl-and-so-on)/camden-pcn-code-01-yellow-line

Where you can park with a Blue Badge in Camden

any Blue Badge bay (check if there is a time limit stated on sign)
designated disabled parking spaces that have been allocated to you with a permit
residents or paid-for parking space, if it is not in the Green Badge zone or housing estate. In the Green Badge area, payment is required to park in paid for parking bays and by displaying a Blue Badge you get an hour free after the expiry time
on a single or double yellow line within your parking zone (up to 3 hours), if it is not in the Green Badge zone or housing estate

Should there be any BB usage anyway if the disabled person was no longer a passenger?

Should there be any BB usage anyway if the disabled person was no longer a passenger?

Yes I suspect you'll find there is, as it is usually the ultimate purpose for which the journey is being made that counts. Who is the Blue Badge holder?

There's been a number of cases going as far as the European court on similar matters, maybe not concerning Blue Badges, but with regards to tachograph use, the use of vehicles for hire and reward. It all cases it is the ultimate use of the vehicle for that day and that journey.

The Camden website states, presumably underpinned by its policy, that:

Where you can park with a Blue Badge in Camden

.....
residents or paid-for parking space, if it is not in the Green Badge zone or housing estate.

The traffic sign in evidence is a bog standard Residents parking only sign. Nothing on the sign indicates that the location lies within a 'Green' zone.

How would a motorist know when parking that they were not permitted to do so?

For the purposes of parking, the council has chosen to call the 'exempted area' under the 2000 Local Authority Traffic Orders Exemption regs a 'Green zone'. I don't know how their TMOs deal with traffic signs for parking places in this zone, but it's not overlaid with statute and therefore must be included within orders.

And as regards its display, as I understand it these provisions apply:

Display of an individual’s badge when a vehicle is parked
14.—(1) This regulation prescribes for the purposes of section 21(4A) of the 1970 Act the circumstances in which an individual’s badge may be displayed while a vehicle is parked.

(2) An individual’s badge may be displayed on a vehicle while it is parked if it–

(a)has been driven by the holder, or has been used to carry the holder, to the place where it is parked; or

(b)is to be driven by the holder, or is to be used to carry the holder, from that place. (my emphasis)


OP, my thoughts are to go with what you know and the circumstances and that because there wasn't any indication on the traffic sign, which is shown in their photos as being a standard 'permit holders only' sign, you are still not clear as to why the PCN was issued.