Author Topic: PCN Hounslow, 12R parked in residents parking place without permit, Mayfield Avenue  (Read 393 times)

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Not from Hounslow so went to look up parking on the councils website (https://www.hounslow.gov.uk/info/20104/parking_in_hounslow/1125/parking_on_the_street), the only link on there is broken (https://www.hounslow.gov.uk/info/20104/parking_in_hounslow/2632/christmas_parking_and_traffic_enforcement_schedule)



So I hop onto google street view and look near where I am meeting my friend and see a side street with a controlled Zone that runs Mon - Sat 9am - 7pm. Perfect, I'm meeting up at 7pm on a Tuesday. If I'm early, I can pay, I can even seen the pay here sign on the left (circled in red) but I notice the image is from Sept 2022.



Google map

As I have driven in, this is the view of the entry sign:


So the combo of:

1. Council website providing no info for on-street parking due to a broken link
2. Google street view from 2022 showing Mayfield Ave being a CPZ Residents permit parking Mon-Sat 9am-7pm
3. Seeing the "Pay Here" signs, suggesting the bays are Pay and Display
4. Actually driving there and seeing the one entry sign visible to me saying "Pay and Display Zone Mon-Sat 7am-7pm"
5. Arriving at 7pm on a Tuesday (Dashcam shows 17:58:53 because it doesn't adjust to Daylight Savings, so it's actually 18:58:53)

lead me to believe, "just park up in a bay and leave before 7am"

Nope




Hounslow PCN website
PCN number: NJ42237177
VRN:R888XGD

I didn't actually see the PCN until I got home (over an hours drive away) as it was hidden by that broccoli plushie (don't ask).

So I jumped on Google streetview again and if you place yourself right at the t-junction, there is a a newer pic available from Aug 2024 where the left entry sign is bashed up and rotated and the one on the right says Controlled Zone (with the residents permit) Mon-Sat 9am-9pm Sunday 5-9pm.

I think I have a few possible outs here:

Poorly maintained and poor signage

The left hand entry sign has been twisted to the point of reading the wrong face for nearly 3 years now (Sept 2022 street view + pic and vid from my car)

the right hand entry sign isn't picked up by my dashcam

and is obscured on approach by the tree and Leyland shop sign




Parking enforcement error - Not following TSRGD Schedule 18 Part 1 page 543

I've had a look on the spreadsheet that @cp8759 has in their READ THIS FIRST post and I think this appeal might be valid in my case.

I looked up the TMO for 7 Mayfield Avenue Hounslow Traffic Orders and it states
"2022/70 MAYFIELD AVENUE
Resident Permit Holders Mon-Sat 9am-9pm and Sun 5pm-9pm Except Christmas Day, Good Friday or a Bank Holiday
Effective from 07/11/2022 to the present day
Data correct at time of publication (20/05/2025)
Data correct at time of publication 20/05/2025 Displaying parking active on: 21-05-2025"


Doing a search on their site for TMO 2022/70 looking at the most recent document March 26 20205 Deposited Documents – Reference TMO/E003/24 Experimental ... page 143/214 states "SCHEDULE 8A
In relation to a parking place referred to in this Schedule, the expression “permitted hours”
means the period between 9.00am and 9.00pm Monday to Saturday, and 5.00 and 9.00pm
Sunday except for Christmas Day, Good Friday and Bank Holidays.
Parking places in respect of which a vehicle may be left during the permitted hours if it displays
a valid residents’ permit"

and page 144/214 "No. of parking place 12. Mayfield Avenue, Chiswick, London, the west side, from a point 5 metres south of the northern flank wall of No. 7 Mayfield Avenue to a point 2 metres south of the party wall of Nos. 1 & 3 Mayfield Avenue

Where as their sign in their own PCN evidence, does not state those excluded days



Parking enforcement error - Not following Traffic Signs Manual, Chapter 3, Regulatory Signs, 14,1,17 (page 197)

Which states:
14.1.17.  The end of a type (a) CPZ is indicated by the sign to diagram 664 (S7‑2‑1, see
Figure 14-2). Where one zone ends and another commences, the zone end sign is replaced by
the zone entry sign for the second zone. Where a road forms the boundary between two zones,
it should be within one or the other zone, or excluded from both; one side of the road should not
be within one zone and the other side within the other zone, as this would result in signing that
is likely to be confusing to drivers. Where a type (a) CPZ is adjacent to a restricted parking zone
(see section 15), the zone end sign is replaced by the restricted zone entry sign. Likewise, the
zone end sign for the restricted parking zone is replaced by the CPZ entry sign

Paired with this PDF that shows the entrance to Mayfield Ave are part of the Chiswick Inner core CPZ and are still treated as such by being the Pay to park zone meaning that there should be a SECOND set of CPZ signs




Is this a strong case?

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This isn't complicated.

Controlled parking zones control only single yellow lines not parking bays although times are often the same.

You have to check the sign of any bay you park in.

It seems you didn't. But the council pics don't seem to show your car in relation to the sign - is the bay clearly signed?



« Last Edit: May 21, 2025, 11:50:29 am by stamfordman »

MY apologies I'm not the best at explaining the similar but different language.

To answer your question, the bay was signed but I'd argue not clearly (tree blocks view from the north, a planter box is right up against the pole and partially obscures the view from the south, the sign is the smallest it has been since 2008, no longer indicates the Pay and Display Zone has ended due to lack of arrow, the reduced size means it blends in with the white window frames from a drivers perspective)



My understanding was that the area was a  "Pay and Display Parking Zone" i.e. all marked bays are pay and display Monday to Saturday 7am to 7pm.


Text is from the Traffic Signs Manual - Chapter 3 - Regulatory Signs, page 195

This was the information I had. I had looked on the councils website about on-street parking and the link to any info was dead, I had a look around with google street view and everything indicated all restrictions ended after 7pm. When I actually arrived in person, the only visible sign confirmed to me that it was a Pay and Display Zone, free after 7pm.

Yes, I inadvertently parked in a residents permit bay after being mislead by:
A broken website link which stopped me getting the information I specifically looked for
A poorly placed entry sign that is obscured from an eastern approach by both a tree and a extended shop front
A poorly maintained entry sign that has been rotated almost 90 degrees since at least August 2024
A poorly placed planter box that clutters the bay sign
A poorly designed and placed bay sign that blends in with the background while driving can't be seen from the end of the 3 car length long bay.

This is all aside from the myriad of technical issues e.g.
Signs not indicating changes (entry and exit) in CPZ
Signs not complaint with the Traffic Signs Regulations and General Directions 2016 or Traffic Signs Manual 2019 in multiple ways e.g. too short sight lines, blocked by other street furniture, signs not with in maximum distances of their bays
Signs not matching Traffic Management Order (TMO 2022/70) - I mean literally having an appeal example from 2023 from this council, where one of the two accepted issues was the signs not matching the TMO surely is good news, no?

It's no good posting Google Maps shots as they are often old.

If you feel strongly about this as you obviously do go back and take pictures of the bay and the position of the council sign pic in relation to where your car was.

It's no good posting Google Maps shots as they are often old.

If you feel strongly about this as you obviously do go back and take pictures of the bay and the position of the council sign pic in relation to where your car was.
+1, the Controlled Parking Zone signs are irrelevant, in fact all signs apart from the ones for the bay are irrelevant. If you want to say that the bay isn't properly signed you need some evidence to prove that, and please stop going on about signs that are not in that bay.

None of the adjudicators follow Malcolm Newman v London Borough of Hounslow (2230448785, 9 November 2023) any more, so I definitely wouldn't risk the discount based on that alone.
I practice law in the Traffic Penalty Tribunal, London Tribunals, the First-tier tribunal for Scotland, and the Traffic Penalty Tribunal for Northern Ireland, but I am not a solicitor or a barrister. Notwithstanding this, I voluntarily apply the cab rank rule. I am a member of the Society of Professional McKenzie Friends, my membership number is FM193 and I abide by the SPMF service standards.

Quote from: 'Gumph' date='Thu, 19 Jan 2023 - 10:23'
cp8759 is, indeed, a Wizard of the First Order

So I appealed the PCN and they rejected me.

Here was my appeal:

Contravention did not occur due inadequate signage: Firstly, entrance to Mayfield Avenue was Chiswick High Road which was very busy and entrance signs are obscured by shop signage a tree and the street sign for Mayfield Avenue itself until within the zigzag lines of the pedestrian crossing which is approximately 30m from the driver (see Sign line of sight distance) and from the still taken from my dashcam (Dashcam image 1) (In fact it is not completely clear until the end of the pedestrian crossing which would reduce this to approximately 20m) This does not comply with the Traffic Signs Manual Chapter 3 - 1.8 Siting of upright signs -1.8.1 "It is essential that drivers have an unobstructed view of upright signs. The distance which should be kept clear of obstructions to the sight line, whether caused by vegetation, other signs or street furniture, is known as the clear visibility distance." -1.8.2 Table 1-1 which states that the minimum clear visibility distance for a road speed of up to 20mph is 45m

Secondly, the entry sign that is visible has been rotated and shows Mayfield Avenue to be "Pay and Display ZONE Mon - Sat 7am-7pm" (see Dashcam image 2). This has been the case since August 2024 according to google street view.

Thirdly, the images provided by the CEO for this PCN do not show the bay sign in relation to the vehicle in question. Below I have cited various examples of PCN appeals (London Tribunals/Traffic Penalty Tribunals) that have been accepted that either in part or in whole match this PCN's circumstances See previous relevant accepted appeals: Absence of context for bay sign and vehicle: Dheeraj Kumar v Royal Borough of Kingston Upon Thames (2230468239, 07 December 2023) Filip Baverstock v Cambridgeshire County Council (YA00014-2307, 02 September 2023) Shetal Patel v London Borough of Harrow (2220650316, 27 October 2022) Misaligned entry sign inadequate: John Conroy v London Borough of Brent (223031738A, 05 August 2023) Hassan Al-Tahan v London Borough of Ealing (222009658A, 22 March 2022) Inadequate entry signage: Michael David v London Borough of Newham (2230409739, 11 December 2023) Michael Maurice v London Borough of Brent (2230433551, 26 October 2023)

Sign line of sight:


Dashcam image 1:


Dashcam image 2:


Their rejection letter:



Still worth fighting it?

It is almost impossible to work out the strengths and weaknesses of your case, as there seems to be no relevant evidence before us. I don't know why you've provided dashcam stills, what we'd really need is photos taken from the position where you parked your car. The legal requirement when you park your car in a bay is to look around once you've got out of the vehicle and before leaving the vehicle unattended. Either there was a regulatory sign for the bay that was there to be seen from where you parked, or there wasn't. I can only repeat that the CPZ signs are irrelevant, even if there wasn't a CPZ the position in respect of the bay would be exactly the same.

I suggest you go back, stand in the exact spot where you would have been when you got out of the driver's side door, and take come photos showing what can be seen when you look around.
I practice law in the Traffic Penalty Tribunal, London Tribunals, the First-tier tribunal for Scotland, and the Traffic Penalty Tribunal for Northern Ireland, but I am not a solicitor or a barrister. Notwithstanding this, I voluntarily apply the cab rank rule. I am a member of the Society of Professional McKenzie Friends, my membership number is FM193 and I abide by the SPMF service standards.

Quote from: 'Gumph' date='Thu, 19 Jan 2023 - 10:23'
cp8759 is, indeed, a Wizard of the First Order