'Illegally parked' car near Bristol Airport wrapped in cling film and egged

https://www.bristolpost.co.uk/news/bristol-news/illegally-parked-car-near-bristol-1890658

A car that was parked in a remote country lane near Bristol Airport has been wrapped in cling film and apparently partly covered with egg. A tyre has also been deflated and notes left on the car making clear the opinions of the perpetrator(s). It seems that someone or some people decided that it was left there by a person or persons flying from the airport and the 'treatment' is believed to be a sign of their displeasure.

Quite how they knew the car was abandoned by an airport user is not made clear. I would certainly not want to leave my car in such a remote location for a few hours let alone days or even weeks.

Unless the car was creating an unnecessary obstruction of the highway or was left in a dangerous position - from the pictures neither seems to apply - it's difficult to see how it was illegally parked. The only offence that might be committed is parking at night on a road without lights if this road is subject to a speed limit greater than 30 mph.

It's certainly annoying to local residents where people leave cars on nearby roads and then fly from the airport, but many people living in a town or city are likely to live somewhere where workers park their cars in local streets for the day.
 
https://www.bristolpost.co.uk/news/bristol-news/bristol-airport-parking-wc-fly-2657432

Nothing to do with Bristol Airport's official car parks or the airport I must point out, but one of the unofficial car park operators has had its licence to transport passengers withdrawn by the regional traffic commissioner.

The operator is Winford Parking and Rental Ltd, under the name WC Park and Fly, with premises in Whitchurch Lane, south Bristol, next to the South Bristol Link Road. It's one of the most popular unofficial car park operators serving BRS.

The traffic commissioner said that the public is 'routinely put in danger' by the shoddy practices of this operator. Vehicles were used without valid insurance or MOTs, with some minibus drivers not possessing a proper lience.

The traffic commissioner took away the licences of the company's two directors, a father and son, and disqualified them from holding a licence for five and three years respectively.
 
They went to town with father and son. About time somethings being done,but only the tip of the iceberg.
 
BRS issued this press release today.

https://www.bristolairport.co.uk/ab.../traffic-commissioner-off-site-parking-ruling

Traffic Commissioner’s ruling sends a clear message to passengers
Created: 19th Mar 2019

Following the decision by the West of England official Traffic Commissioner to revoke the operator licence which allowed Winford Parking and Rental Ltd (which also operates as WC Park and Fly from South Bristol) to transport passengers. Bristol Airport is reminding holidaymakers and business travellers to check the credentials of car park operators before booking.

A recent inquiry heard that the Office of the Traffic Commissioner had been called in by local police and the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency after repeated concerns about the firm, which is entirely unconnected with Bristol Airport.

For peace of mind when flying from Bristol Airport, passengers are advised to use the range of on-site car parking options available. All the airport’s official car parks are located on site, equipped with CCTV and automatic number plate recognition, are Park Mark accredited and are served by a courtesy bus to and from the terminal operating 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Passengers can guarantee their vehicle will be parked on site in an official Bristol Airport car park by making their booking at www.bristolairport.co.uk.

When considering parking for holiday or business trips, passengers should make the following checks:

  1. Ask where your car will be parked and if it will be moved while you are away. Bristol Airport’s Silver Zone uses valet parkers to put customer vehicles into block formation to make best use of available space, but your vehicle will not leave our site. Apart from our premium ‘meet and greet’ service, all other on-site car parks are ‘self-park’, meaning you take your keys with you.
  2. If a minibus is used to shuttle customers between the airport and the car park, make a visual check of the vehicle. If you have any concerns, ask to see the vehicle’s documentation, including insurance certificate and MoT. All Bristol Airport’s vehicles are regularly checked by our in-house motor transport team.

  3. Check with the local council’s development control department whether the car park has permission to operate. Remember, unauthorised car parks could be causing disturbance and distress to neighbours.
 
Multi-storey car park

Now re-opened having been closed for the winter for extra storeys to be added.
 
Cars parked in Felton village and there abouts have had their tyres let down. It is thought these cars have been parked while owners have caught flights. This is a ongoing thing with cars parked for 1 week or 2 weeks.Villagers in various villages close to the airport are fed up with cars parked,there has been a few times owners of properties have had problems getting their cars in and out. Im not a lover of the off airport car parking that has sprung up but they are cheaper than airport parking so there is no excuse for cars being parked in near by villages.
 
Cars parked in Felton village and there abouts have had their tyres let down. It is thought these cars have been parked while owners have caught flights. This is a ongoing thing with cars parked for 1 week or 2 weeks.Villagers in various villages close to the airport are fed up with cars parked,there has been a few times owners of properties have had problems getting their cars in and out. Im not a lover of the off airport car parking that has sprung up but they are cheaper than airport parking so there is no excuse for cars being parked in near by villages.

Whilst such action can't be condoned it's easy to understand why some people let their frustration get the better of them. I heard one Felton resident telling the Radio Bristol presenter this morning that some air travellers park their cars in the village then call for a taxi to take them to the airport.

They might as well use one of the car parks, whether airport or one of the unofficial ones, albeit using an unofficial one can be a lottery. Some are probably fine but I'd never trust one in case it turned out to be a maverick.

There have been many stories about off-site airport parking, including Bristol, where cars have been been returned having been driven many, many miles, damaged and even stolen from. At least with the airport there is an organisation that can be challenged, through litigation if necessary, whereas with some unofficial car parks it can be difficult to pin down the owner/operator and even if a judgement is obtained in a civil court there still remains the problem of actually getting your money.
 
Bristol Airport objects to rival's plans for 3,000-space park and ride


Bristol Airport has objected to a planning application that seeks to provide a 3,000-space park and ride near junction 21 of the M5 outside Weston-super-Mare.

Passengers would be conveyed between the park and ride and the airport by buses at the rate of three to five an hour.

The airport says, Critically, if approved, the proposed park and ride facility would undermine Bristol Airport’s existing and an emerging airport surface access strategy, seriously impact the ability of Bristol Airport Ltd to promote more sustainable transport choices for passengers and would lead to the increased use of unauthorised off-site car parks.

Mead Realisation, the car park applicants, say the airport's objection has a "commercial agenda" behind it.

Highways England said the park and ride might impact on the safe and efficient operation of the strategic road network. Furthermore, Highways England said the land might be needed in the future for improvements to the junction.

Inevitably, many people will see protectionism in the airport's objection and coming as it does alongside news this week that they intend to increase express drop-off charges to fund carbon offset (also covered by the local press) it's not been a good week for the airport's PR image.

Rightly or wrongly the car parking issues paint the airport as money-grabbing in some people's eyes. What many don't realise is that smaller regional airports these days have to have substantial income streams away from aeronautical revenue income as these airports' business models are now very different from the days when much of their income came from charges paid by airlines.
 
BBC radio Bristol reporting this morning that another car in Felton has had its tyres let down by someone unhappy about them parking in the village.
 
BBC radio Bristol reporting this morning that another car in Felton has had its tyres let down by someone unhappy about them parking in the village.
I heard something about that too but was doing something else at the time and only really half-heard.

Some months ago one of our posters reported that the entrance to his sister's house at Wrington was blocked for a week by an airport parker. Can't condone criminal damage but when you can't gain access to your own house it's not difficult to empathise with the householder's plight - although I ought to make it clear that in the Wrington case there was no criminal damage caused to the 'offending' car.

There is a school and a shopping centre near us and we fequently have staff from both parking their cars all day in the street outside our house, sometimes partially obstructing the entrance to our garage.

I think whatever provision the airport makes for car parking there will always be some air passengers who will look for a free space on the streets. North Somerset Council now deals with street parking rather than the police. Because local authorities do it under the civil law they can keep any money raised unlike the police who use the criminal law where fines go the Exchequer. Could be a little earner for the council if the practice of inconsiderate airport-related street parking becomes widespread.
 

Complaints from some passengers about Silver Zone car park.

As is so often the case with Reach Plc (formerly Trinity Mirror) they go in for scanning social media sites and then base 'stories' on the tweets etc they come across, without ever seeking to interview the tweeters. It's cheap and shoddy 'journalism' at its worst so we never get an in-depth report which might enable us to judge whether such compaints are justified.

Incidentally, the four tweets quoted are all dated in the first part of June yet the newspaper 'article' was published today. Perhaps the Bristol Post had to wait that long for a response from the airport. If so, it's the only proactive thing they appear to have done with this 'story'.
 
Airport press release today re Uber. From next month all Uber cars awaiting a pick-up at the airport will wait in a new designated area near the A38 roundabout leading to the Silver Zone area. Private cars can also use this space for up to an hour as an alternative to the drop-off park on the north side - a shuttle bus will connect the new waiting zone with the terminal every ten minutes.

The move is in response to local complaints of tax drivers parking inconsiderately around the area whilst waiting to pick up from the airport.


Uber commits to using new airport waiting zone
Created: 12th Sep 2019
Drivers who use the Uber app will use a new waiting zone at Bristol Airport from next month, helping to reduce the number of vehicles parking in lanes and laybys in local villages.

The transport giant will ‘geo-fence’ the new area, which is located just off the A38 roundabout serving the Airport’s Silver Zone car park. This means that drivers can only be dispatched to the terminal to pick up passengers if they are in the waiting zone.

The waiting zone will open next month and comes in response to calls for action from neighbouring communities concerned about the impact of inconsiderate parking by taxis and other vehicles causing disturbance and even obstructing access to properties.

The waiting zone will also be open to private cars, providing an hour’s free period as an alternative to the existing Drop and Go area adjacent to the terminal. A shuttle bus will operate between the terminal and the waiting zone every ten minutes. The Airport’s official taxi partner, Arrow Cars, will continue to drop off and pick up directly outside the terminal.

“We are delighted that drivers who use the Uber app will be using this new facility,” said Tom Hack, Head of Commercial at Bristol Airport. “It will help to reduce disturbance to our neighbours while providing drivers with a safe and secure place to wait between fares.”

Eugenie Teasley, Uber Head of Cities, South England said: "We are really excited to be working with Bristol Airport. It is our goal to move people from A to B, all at the touch of a button, and by working with Bristol Airport, we hope to make it easier for people to get to and from
the airport.


Unconnected with the Uber story is a BBC report about a company that is setting up a sort of 'Airbnb of cars' at BRS that involves car owners renting out their cars whilst they are away on holiday. They will still pay the airport parking charges but the idea is that they can recoup some money by renting out their cars through the company.

The company already operates such a scheme at Gatwick and says it works - well, they are not likely to say it doesn't. I don't know if other companies operate similar schemes at other airports.

I would not be interested in renting out my car.
 
I don't know what sort of take up with people renting their cars out whilst they are on holiday. I for 1 would not do this with my car as there is no way to know how it will be treated. You only need to look closely at rental vehicles to see what sort of state they are in,as with some ppl say its not my car and hand it back with no worries.
 
I don't like the idea of someone renting my car. My experience of people who rent cars generally (not always) tend to leave them in a not so good state afterwards. Who is responsible for the odd scratch or little dent down the side when they insist was there before they rented the vehicle. It all sounds like more trouble than it's worth.
 
Re #75, 76 and 77 above, the airport has now issued a press release.


Bristol Airport Passengers Can Park, Fly and Earn
Created: 9th Oct 2019

A brand-new scheme has been launched at Bristol Airport that can help passengers earn money while they travel, the new 'Airbnb of Cars' service.

Woman Leaving Car Image

Car & Away is a peer-to-peer car sharing service which allows car owners to rent out their vehicle while on holiday.

Launched originally in partnership with Gatwick Airport, the innovative scheme, dubbed ‘the Airbnb of cars’ has been so successful it has now expanded to partner with Bristol Airport, allowing passengers to become part of the revolutionary car sharing community.

Car & Away has also been recognised as a sustainable solution to issues around car park capacity faced by many airports around the UK.

To register, cars must be less than nine years old, have valid MOT and tax and be covered by fully comprehensive insurance. Car & Away can then provide fully comprehensive insurance and RAC cover for each rental. All renters are vetted both online and in person, vehicles checked for roadworthiness and even fitted with a Telematics device to monitor renter-driving behaviour.

All cars are fully valeted (both inside and out) before and after every single rental meaning owners have the added bonus of flying back to a clean and tidy vehicle which has undergone a RAC roadworthiness check.

Andy Hibbert, CEO of Car & Away, said: “Many of us share our homes via Airbnb and some even share their most personal of possessions - pets - via the likes of borrowmydoggy. People are getting more used to and comfortable with the sharing economy so sharing a car actually isn’t such a big step."

“We are delighted to be launching this service in partnership with Bristol Airport - not only are parking and renting customers being given a new choice but we are also pioneering a capacity solution that means that more people can park at the airport.”

“For car owners – not only can their car earn them enough money to cover the cost of a family meal out on holiday for example - they get the added bonus of a full valet ready for their return home.”

“Renters love the fact that they know exactly what car they’ve booked, even down to the detail of parking assist, Sat Nav and other features. They can pick their car up in a matter of minutes – a service we know our customers really value. When it comes to renting cars, together with our partners, we provide a service where everyone wins.”

Tom Hack, Head of Commercial at Bristol Airport, said the airport was delighted with the scheme so far: “We’re excited to be working with Andy and his team and supporting a new and innovative car sharing scheme that offers our passengers a unique service. Car and Away has been incredibly successful at Gatwick and we hope it ‘takes off’ here too.”

Read more about our new Rent & Earn parking product here.
 

North Somerset Council officers are using dashcams to try to gauge to extent of long-term parking on local village roads by people flying off from BRS.
 

From next Monday the charge for BRS's Drop and Go car park will rise from £1 to £3 for the first ten minutes. The short stay and pick-up area located opposite the terminal will see the rate for a 20-minute stay rise from £1 to £2. Price rises will also occur at both areas for longer stays.

There is now also a free waiting zone for periods up to an hour that is linked to the terminal by shuttle bus. This is on the South Side of the airfield though, over a mile by road from the terminal.
 

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