Parking etiquette for Bikepackers

[Adventurer]

Thought I would not be disgusting parking etiquette but after a confrontation from a rather rude women post bikepacking trip which left a bad taste in my mouth I was wondering how you manage parking your vehicle overnight securely for a bikepacking trip.

She had actually been waiting for me to come back.

Just to say I was very polite to the lady and apologised for where I parked and understood her opinion but did discuss with her that sadly we have no rights over what happens in relation to parking on the public highway.


I decided to park outside of a town but in a residential area. It was a reasonably wide road (it was wide enough for three cars, it was not possible to double park) with no yellow lines or any parking restrictions and no residents only parking restrictions. I also did not park on the path, I was on the road.

One side of the road was outside houses and you could see that residents were parking outside there houses. The other side and no houses at all. So I parked on the other side of the road with no houses.
So effectively I was parked on the other side of the road from this woman's house. I did actually think I was being respectful by not parking outside someone's house, even though a homeowner has no legal rights to the road outside heir house.

People park opposite my house and to be honest there is absolutely nothing I can do about it, not that it bothers me anyway.


Anyway she was telling me the nightmare I have caused over the weekend. The traffic a delivery truck caused dropping furniture off. Err maybe that was the truck causing the issue not my car. Vehicles having to negotiate past my car and getting close to her very expensive car that she has worked hard to pay for (yes she actually said this to me).

I could go on, but when I carmly pointed out there were no parking restrictions and their were no yellow lines and discussed that law she did start to get angry but I just apologised and understood her opinion.

I honestly think this attitude is part of the entitled car culture that the space around my car is legally mine and the road outside my house personally belongs to me attitude.


I know that people get pissed off by people parking outside your house but if it really was an issue you would use the constructive route and contact the council to put in place parking/residential parking restriction, if not then what can you actually do?


Anyone had this experience?

I'd rather not park my car in some isolated place as I probably won't have any car to go back to, and parking overnight in an official car park is not even possible.

[Ray Young]

As you say you parked totally legally which you rightly pointed out to her so she has no right to complain. Like you i would have started out being polite to her but if her attitude continued as you say it did then i think my politeness would have worn thin very quickly. I think you may have just been unfortunate in parking outside her house.

[Justchris]

She is the one with the issues not you. You were never going to have a satisfactory outcome to your conversation with her. Some people are just like that. Never had this particular problem. But I work with very ill children one or two days a week, the kids are fine usually but the parents feel a bit stigmatized and are neurotic at times. Nothing you can do.

[ScotRoutes]

Generally, I'd not park in a place that restricted a road three vehicles wide to only one. Quite apart from the potential disruption to traffic flows there would be the risk of damage to my car if it was the only one on that side of the road.

[Adventurer]

Generally, I'd not park in a place that restricted a road three vehicles wide to only one. Quite apart from the potential disruption to traffic flows there would be the risk of damage to my car if it was the only one on that side of the road.

To be honest most roads are two lane and when people park on either side it restricts it to one. So being a residential road that is three cars width I would say you won't get much wider residential road. I've not seen any four car width residential roads in a small town. Especially not in Rural Shropshire.


When people park in two lane roads, they tend to park on the path to aid the flow of traffic, but this just shows the car culture of we must not reduce road flow. Even though I did not cause any obstruction I was conscious that I did not cause inconvenient to those that use the path, which I feel that parking on the path Is much more being inconsiderate of other users.

[Single Speed George]

If its free , safe and legal I park there ....

[Adventurer]

If its free , safe and legal I park there ....

That's what I was doing, shame about the entitled home owner who thought she had legal rights to the road not just outside her property but actually on the other side of the road.

At least she did not key my car.

[Single Speed George]

If its free , safe and legal I park there ....

That's what I was doing, shame about the entitled home owner who thought she had legal rights to the road not just outside her property but actually on the other side of the road.

At least she did not key my car.

Ye my car is so shire a good keying might improve it which is why I'm happy to abandon it places ... Tbh she had no right to the road , so ye just ignore her and park there again haha

[PJG]

The problem is hers.
However to avoid contention with people of her temperament, I do tend to park not in front of houses, and completely off the road if possible, even if that means not parking right at the "start" of the ride.
If I'm bikepacking, then another mile or 2 isn't going to kill me

[Single Speed George]

If I'm bikepacking, then another mile or 2 isn't going to kill me

You never know best not to risk it ! haha

[NorwayCalling]

Its a bit more complex than its your right to park outside/opposite someones home IMHO. Yes legally it is your right, but again just because its legal doesn't mean its right.

I can't park outside my own house because of people who work in or are visiting the local hospital. Even if its not you, it will have been someone else who has caused an issue in the past and you just got it in the ear from a frustrated local. It's hard to explain the level of frustration about not being able to park outside/near your own home because of people who do not live (and I think this is the point) on the street/local area are parking there (and no doubt drive off home 12 hours later to park outside their own homes unhindered).

This has nothing to do with car culture of being a self righteous car driver or any of that. Its about just being able to park outside/near my house, just as the vast majority of other people take for granted. i even have to pay £70 to park outside my own house (resident permit) and still it does not stop the hospital parking issues...

I am not taking sides in your particular case, I was not there, I did not witness the problems cause (real or not).

I just want to point out that parking outside outer peoples houses, especially with people who suffer long term issues with commuters/holiday makers/vicars/nuns/whoever parking outside their homes, can cause frustration for others.

[Single Speed George]

If you had to pay for a residents permit , people parking outside your house without one must be in the wrong some how though legally ? So doest fit in to my , legal , safe , free idea ... Where I use to live people would park for the near by hospital, and there was pleanty of space for them etc didn't get in the way of locals drives , but it was a nice area and miserable naboughs of myn would still post passive aggressive notes in the windows, despite there being no problems (as a family we had 3 cars and a van and could always park ) , so some people are just over protective

[Alpinum]

We regularly see how sub standard roads are.

Take the train.

[Richard G]

As long as you're not blocking anything (like the road, a dropped kerb, or someone's drive) then it's all fair game in my opinion.

I wanted somewhere guaranteed to park my car at home... so I rented a place with a driveway. * shrug *

Back when I lived in a place with no drive, you parked where you could, even if it was on another street from your house. Was no big deal.

[fatbikephil]

A large part of my job (Road Safety and Traffic Management) entails dealing with enquiries from residents complaining about not being able to park outside their house, someone else parking outside their house, someone else telling them they can't park outside their house or not being able to park at all (trans having to walk more that 50 yds from parking space to front door). It would appear that many people are unbelievably selfish, ignorant, stupid and lazy when it comes to such things hence the high likelihood of an incomer (gasp) who parks outside /near someones property getting grief.

One time I parked in Dalwhinnie (location, middle of nowhere, pop 50) on the road by the railway station. When I came back some self righteous wifie from the house nearby came out to moan that I was parked illegally - how I laughed, particularly when she told me she would phone the Police. I spent a brief time politely explaining the laws governing parking on the public road and the chance of the Police being interested (exactly zero) and left.

I generally avoid residential streets due to the chance of getting your car damaged by one of the above people who thinks they can act the enforcer. Best bets are roads away from housing, main streets in villages, railway station car parks (ie ones that don't have restrictions or charges). Oh and mind and park in accordance with the Highway code

[Wotsits]

Just be glad that there's no 'BearBones Bikepacking' car stickers...

Hopefully John Climber will be along soon to fill you in on how that one turned out

[Bearbonesnorm]

If anyone ever wants to park up at the Towers while they go off on a trip, you're more than welcome - I'll even put the kettle on and talk at you while you get ready

[Zippy]

I park on the next street along from where I live coz I can't be arsed with how petty our neighbours get. There's more to it than that...but some people (well most it seems) are just like that

I've got cracked paint on my BM bumper coz a van was trying to prove a point (yes this is a neighbour), another neighbour that parked actually touching my old man's car...I don't get some people. I just think my neighbours don't have many brain cells, and I live in wannabe middle-classdom in a village with a waiting list of people wanting to live there
Spose round here we've got the excuse of lots of people in a small space...

[slarge]

In the unlikely event that anyone wants to drop their car off in Warwickshire my drive is available and we don't have any neighbours to get upset.

[windjammer]

i park my car on campsites for a small fee,just emailed a campsite in the lake district i can leave my car there 4 nights for £10 and get a shower when i get back

[benp1]

I live very near to my tube station, we used to have all sorts park on our road rather than pay for the tube station car park. I can't blame them, it's almost as close and free. It was disappointing not to be able to guarantee a place outside your own house, but they're perfectly entitled so that was that

The only problem was people blocking our drive, I really don't get some people - how is that acceptable? They came back to find a ticket on their car.

We then got parking restrictions so there's load of space for all the residents. We've also had our drive redone so you can park a car AND get to the garage, and then gone down to one car so it isn't an issue at all. Much easier now!

[Scud]

I had this very recently, i live 8 miles from the coast and quite often ride from the popular tourist destination of Wells on Sea, so park my car on a quiet back street in the evening rode out and bivvy and then usually back by 9am to my car.

The lady whose house i had parked outside (who owned one car and who had that one car parked on a driveway) was threatening to call Police and "get my car clamped", i calmly pointed out i was in no-ones way, told her where i lived and that i paid Council Tax to the same council, she had clearly been sat in the window waiting for me though.