IN PRAISE OF TRAFFIC ENFORCEMENT OFFICERS

Let me state my case from the beginning. We have created a society where you can’t get from A to B very easily by public transport, certainly not with any great speed, and especially if you live outside a town of any size.

Forced therefore to use a car, and pay through the nose for petrol, I believe, it is morally wrong to charge for parking. I avoid doing so wherever possible, voting against it at every opportunity. In going about my business I choose where to stop according to where parking is free. Fortunately the ‘God of parking places’ hears my prayers.

As a law-abiding citizen, there are times when it is impossible to avoid having to pay, painful though it might be. In my case this is usually as a result of having to attend yet another meeting.

Most of us tend to think that parking enforcement officers are a bunch of ‘jobs worths’, and I’d be hard pushed to disagree.

However, on three separate occasions recently, I have been blessed by Traffic Enforcement Officers with a pragmatic, practical approach to doing what is surely one of the worst jobs around. For the sake of their jobs I’m unable to reveal who they were as I’m sure, they’d be hung, drawn and quartered.

On the first occasion I was trying to park at a station shortly before my train was due to leave. The wretched meter would not allow me to pay for longer than the day, and the vile mobile phone payment system refused to comprehend my car registration number. In desperation I drove to an adjacent car park. It was then I came across the PEO and pleaded for mercy. His solution? To slap a parking enforcement notice on my car with the words ‘good until Thursday’, which enabled me to park for the two days I needed. Whilst I had the requisite £15 it would have cost me to park, he refused to take any money at all.

On another occasion, soon after the new regime was brought into force, I needed to park the car for longer than the ‘free for one hour’ slot would allow. The PEO said ‘ just drive round the block to that space behind me as I won’t get back there for another two hours.’

And again this week, which prompted me to write this, I had paid my 50p to park for 30 minutes and as a meeting had run late came haring down the road, nearly killing myself in my high heels, only to find the PEO with machine at the ready, about to give me a ticket. ‘If you’ve got another 50p you can put in the meter, I’ll let it go.’ he said. With only 5p coins to put in the machine, which kept spitting them out, he eventually let me go without further payment.

God bless them all. And another thing, machines that don’t give change is in effect stealing. I wonder what would happen if we all refused to pay?