Traffic warden breaks rules to catch out drivers (From This Is Local London)

Merton Council traffic warden breaks two rules trying to catch out drivers in Mitcham

11:30am Thursday 19th July 2012 in Where I Live By Omar Oakes

A traffic warden was spotted trying to catch out illegal driving while committing two traffic offences themselves.

The resident who took the picture in Langdale Avenue, Mitcham, last month, said Merton Council had “double standards” when it came to parking.

The resident, who did not want to be named, said: “You’ve got a traffic warden parked on double yellow lines and in a box junction at the same time – two offences at once.

“They’re allowed to take photos of us breaking their rules so let’s take pictures of them doing the very same thing and see what the council does about it.”

It is illegal to park on double yellow lines at any time unless a sign says you can temporarily load or unload goods.

Motorists also risk a fine if they drive into a box junction unless there is a clear exit route.

In May, Merton Council took on new powers to deal with moving traffic offences, and has expanded its mobile CCTV van fleet to five vehicles.

The civil enforcement officers (CEOs) inside the vans are able to capture evidence of illegal parking as well as cars wrongly driving in bus lanes and box junctions.

A Merton Council spokeswoman said: “CEOs are permitted by law to park where necessary to safely carry out their enforcement duties, and that includes yellow lines and box junctions. 

“However, we give our CEOs clear guidelines as to where they can and cannot park.

“Box junctions are one of the places where we do not want them to park and we have reminded all of our CEOs about this.”

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