A claim to fame, I issued first blue badge in Suffolk

[GCA1947]

When I was employed I worked for a County Council and one of my roles was to issue parking badges after the application form had been scrutinised. The original badges were orange but it was decided that they should change to blue! A good system that is so fearfully abused. People who abuse blue badges should lose their car for a month so the penalty really hurts. Ditto people who drink and drive, talk on mobile phones anything that takes their attention off driving, paltry £100.00 fines are ridiculous. Okay rant over. Happy Christmas

[PMRpro Ambassador]

People who drink and drive/text at the wheel should be taken to the dump with their car and forced to press the button to scrap it. I don't require them to be IN the car - they have to watch their pride and joy die. Then they must re-sit their test. Using their phone - just take their licence and car away for a long time. And you shouldn't be allowed to use hands-free either - even as a sat nav if you touch it - it is still distracting.

Happy Christmas!!!!!!

[GCA1947 in reply to PMRpro]

I don't know being IN the car would get sensless drivers off the road for good there are far too many cars on the road of England this seems a good way to cut down

Regards

Colin

[piglette]

It does seem an awful lot of people abuse the Blue Badge scheme and the chances of being caught are probably pretty low. The maximum fine is one thousand pounds although I am sure that not many pay that much. I saw a programme on TV the other day where a Mercedes was continuously being parked with a Blue Badge which they suspected was stolen. The driver had had thirty five parking tickets and on filming him, it was a young lad in a hoody, he leapt in the car and drove off. He continued doing it and just ignored the parking tickets. When they tried to tow it away he would leap in and drive off, apparently once all the wheels are off the ground you have got them, but not before. In the end they managed to tow the car off and the look on the warden's face was sheer joy!

[Ida-June128]

Grrrrrr. Eyes down for a quick rant. My blue badge runs out at the end of January and it seemed the only way to request a renewal was to fill in the forms on line. The site warned that it would take about 45 minutes. Imagine my joy when 35 minutes in after struggling with questions that I answered only to find that there was another panel to put the same answers in later on the page the web page timed out! All lost. In fairness I sent an email to Surrey cc asking for the paper forms I filled in last time and had an immediate response saying they were in the post that night.

I run a geriatric Mercedes but have a £14.00 hands free kit which works perfectly. I do rather find that it is drivers in the far more expensive top of the range cars (who all have hands free built in) who have one hand holding a phone glued to their ears...oh...and a postman from the local sorting office who manages to swing round blind corners with one hand on the wheel!

Rant over, a happy and pain free Christmas, New Year and 2017 to one and all.

Ida xxx

[PMRpro Ambassador in reply to Ida-June128]

Be grateful he has one hand on the wheel - I frequently see drivers here with a phone in one hand and the other gesticulating (we are in Italy) or with a fag in it!

[GCA1947]

Why is their mentality so different to mine. I drive an 8.5 foot high campervan, and automatic because guess what I have a dodgy left leg. In England its against the law to drive holding a mobile phone but still the imbeciles do it. There was a woman, I'm not being sexist, who was caught doing her make up in the rearview mirror she got fined and lost her licence for 20 days Yes 20-days. I believe in overdoing punishments so I'd make her lose her licence for ever. Everybody who uses a mobile phone whilst driving should lose their licence for ever. That would get the point across!!!

Another rant out of the way. I have a corker but I'll save that for another time.

Regards and hope you all feel better in the morning.

Colin

[PMRpro Ambassador]

You can edit your posts when you need - click on the right hand box with the downward pointing arrow at the bottom of your post. On your own post it lets you Edit, Delete or Report, for anyone else it is just Report.

[GCA1947 in reply to PMRpro]

PMRpro

Bless you you are truly fantastic and very knowledgeable

Colin