Pepe, "policing" is an issue, especially as we don't have a traffic warden! If it's deemed one's needed at Mull Rally time or the Music Festival, they come over from Oban. We have additional Police over for those events, too and they will deal with traffic offences and re-inforce the by-law of the main car park. Outwith those events, it's really not economic.
The main car park is before Main Street starts and we found that indicating traffic into FREE parking was attractive to all visitors and, whilst some regulars would try for a space along Main Street, most availed themselves of the FREE parking area! This season, however, we have been overwhelmed by motor homes and, being larger, less spaces are available. The suggestion has been to add to this sign to restrict large motor homes from Main Street unless they are going to the ferry. The parking protruding into the highway is already dealt with by the Police, following a call from a local with the vehicle details. Most visitors are reasonable people and would obey such a sign. It's worth trying the light approach first! The information would also go on websites and into the amended leaflet given out on routes to Mull. As regard over-nighting, the lack of policing of the no overnight stays in the main car park is a thorny one and the Council and the Police need to sort!!
If land can be found outside Tob for extra parking, whilst they won't be full on next to the bay but there'll be wide vistas down the Sound of Mull and across to Morvern and Ardnamurchan. (To my way of thinking, much nicer than being stuck in a public car park!)
------------- " When I die I don`t want my life to flash before me in an instant, I want it to be a 3 hour epic !"
Wow. What a great community! I wasn't expecting such a range of informative responses. Thanks to everyone! I'm picking up my first motorhome tomorrow and feeling very excited about it. After a lot of thought I've gone for a 1998 Hymer B584. Still looks in great condition!
It's just under 20' long and approx 7'6" wide (5.98m (L)2.27m (W). So will not fit in a car parking space.
Coming from an IT background, I'm hoping that technology will provide the solution. So if I google 'where can I park my MH in St Austell' I get a couple of options.
I overheard somewhere that it might be possible to carry a light moped on the cycle rack just to scoot around on. But definitely needs some investigation....(!).
A lot my friends who missed out on a gap year in their early life are now having romantic thoughts about traveling around the UK or Europe in a motorhome. So perhaps councils should plan for a surge in demand for MH parking in the next 10 years!
Hi Frank,
Enjoy your new motorhome.
Google is invaluable, we "travel" the route beforehand.
Especially if a review mentions tight lanes to a campsite.
There is nothing worse than listening to the branches scraping down the side of your beloved vehicle.
Use the reviews and knowledge of people on here and you won't go far wrong.
Regards,
Greg.
Regrettably, I don't think that strapped for cash Councils anywhere in Britain are going to find pots of money or the land to suddenly accommodate the influx of motor homes!
I'm sorry I sort of hi-jacked your thread a bit but, as a community, we're really trying to accommodate change with the increase in motor homes/RET effect with maintaining the character of the place and local amenity.
------------- " When I die I don`t want my life to flash before me in an instant, I want it to be a 3 hour epic !"
It is just geography. Size of the UK & layout of towns make the UK unsuitable for motorhomes used in the way they can be used in France or Spain that are much less densly populated countries. Using a motorhome as a mobile base with cooking/toilet/washing facilities day & night is easy & practical in France but not in UK & that cannot really be easily changed.
Why would towns want to build French style motorhome aires when there are already campsites in the area?
If you read local French newspapers on holiday there are often articles about too many motorhomes & rubbish being dumped etc. Even popular French resorts have problems with motorhome parking at peak times.
Whatever camping equipment one uses in the UK it works best in the UK to be campsite based & travel the local area from there using either car, bike or public transport. Motorhome use in UK can be little different from caravan use except one does not have a car to get around.
The UK is not all densely populated. Scotland, Wales , N.Ireland - even areas of England, are relatively unpopulated. But it's access to towns & cities that is the issue here. Motorhome use is in some respects very different from caravanning - like not having a car and difficulty parking a large vehicle in town.
However, I think a lot of areas have become "victims of their own polularity" and I totally sympathise with Ficklejade's dilema about accomodating change while preserving character. Maybe what we need is a better public transport network and more 'Park & Ride' schemes (with space for motorhomes, but no overnight parking).
------------- Two drifters off to see the world.
I'm tired of reality, so I'm off to look for a good fantasy.
Quote: Originally posted by Opensauce on 28/12/2016
It is just geography. Size of the UK & layout of towns make the UK unsuitable for motorhomes used in the way they can be used in France or Spain that are much less densly populated countries. Using a motorhome as a mobile base with cooking/toilet/washing facilities day & night is easy & practical in France but not in UK & that cannot really be easily changed.
Why would towns want to build French style motorhome aires when there are already campsites in the area?
If you read local French newspapers on holiday there are often articles about too many motorhomes & rubbish being dumped etc. Even popular French resorts have problems with motorhome parking at peak times.
Whatever camping equipment one uses in the UK it works best in the UK to be campsite based & travel the local area from there using either car, bike or public transport. Motorhome use in UK can be little different from caravan use except one does not have a car to get around.
Unfortunately OS , too many of the policy decision makers on the council are shortsighted landowners , in the pay of their friends and co-landowners , as we've seen in clacton , some may be happy with the closing of Butlins here , but that's what a seaside town needs to survive , the decision on the rates temporary suspension when asked for whilst updating the site by the owners , was declined , so they upped and left , and also the refusal to allow m/h owners access to the seafront , any normal person can see that m/h owners are a somewhat wealthyish breed , but it is a sad fact we are lead by fools , I know people will call us tight , but as we know they are just sheep happy to be crowded onto site , that is their right , but they should keep their shortsighted , blinkered opinions to theirselves or between them at their meets , some will also state that the councils m/h decision was to keep travellers and rogue owners from their selfish use of precious space , and well it works , but also to the detriment of us street friendly users .
Quote: Originally posted by Capt Lightning on 28/12/2016
The UK is not all densely populated. Scotland, Wales , N.Ireland - even areas of England, are relatively unpopulated. But it's access to towns & cities that is the issue here. Motorhome use is in some respects very different from caravanning - like not having a car and difficulty parking a large vehicle in town.
However, I think a lot of areas have become "victims of their own polularity" and I totally sympathise with Ficklejade's dilema about accomodating change while preserving character. Maybe what we need is a better public transport network and more 'Park & Ride' schemes (with space for motorhomes, but no overnight parking).
Some good points , but why disallow overnight parking ? A good form of revenue for the local population , and a better use of the facility, with certain restriction in place to stop it's abuse , it would work .
I would go as far as suggesting an entry debit card system for
Entry and payment , if you abuse the site your entry would be refused , keeping out the badduns .
A fair enough point, but then a 'Park & ride' tends to become a motorhome park rather than it's intended purpose. You might as well have a proper council run M/H halt with a bus stop outside it.
------------- Two drifters off to see the world.
I'm tired of reality, so I'm off to look for a good fantasy.
Yes, Steve. I thought the blanket ban on motorhomes even parking day times on Clacton seafront was extreme. Though there has been a specific problem with the car & coach park at end of the seafront being 'invaded' at certain times by 'caravanners' to the extent that a watch is kept & there is a plan of action by council for that occurence.
Clacton like plenty of other seaside towns I can think of does not have anywhere within easy reach of town centre & beach for motorhome parking available without impinging on existing carpark space. For example the small carparks just off seafront next road down either side of Pier Ave would be suitable for some motorhome parking with water/dump facilities same as France but it ain't going to happen.
I doubt there would be much point in allowing m/h parking away from centre towards Holland-o-s because it's too far out & no cycle tracks of course. If one is very familiar with a town it's easy to envisage how things should be but it's also easy to see why it probably won't happen or if it does it might be some token effort well away from town centre that will probably soon turn into a slum with complaints from locals & so on.
It's fair to say that plenty of motorhome parking areas in France have been blocked off & a council sign stating clousure was for 'sanitary reasons'.
For various reasons I won't go to France opensauce, so I don't know the situation there, I know you go often so I will take your word for it, I used to travel round England a few years back, in my old hymer and found it difficult at times to be accommodated to my liking, and now I'm back m/hing, like most will say, it's got a lot harder, for whatever reasons, it's all very well moaning about the current state of affairs, unfortunately it would seem that it will further deteriorate.
I love Portugal, and usually spend as much time there as I am able to, off season, motor homers are very well looked after, to the extent you can base yourself pretty much as you please, in the high season, there are more controls, only fair and to be expected, that's why I intend to spend some time there in my new m/h.
Other countries appear to do a lot better job than here, which is a great shame, we all are tax payers Inc road fund tax, so we should all be treated the same, perhaps a trip to court and a mention of basic human rights is in order, I am kidding of course, it does seem to do the job for other less deserving folk though.
I would nominate the land immediately adjacent to the airfield as totally suitable for the job OS.
Quote: Originally posted by Capt Lightning on 28/12/2016
A fair enough point, but then a 'Park & ride' tends to become a motorhome park rather than it's intended purpose. You might as well have a proper council run M/H halt with a bus stop outside it.
That is the current situation, I believe that it doesn't work to all motorists needs, or is fair. It should be equal and fair for all of us, not just the majority, minorities, even m/h minorities deserve equality.
I decided to go from car/caravan to 25ft MH and thought the same
so i decided to put a small rack on the back and have a 125cc motorbike to travel around. Great to park anywhere mostly on the pavements and bike racks Europe and UK.
I now have a 1100 cc touring bike with sat nav panniers the lot this is trailered and has been all over Europe and uk.
Quote: Originally posted by strongski on 27/12/2016
.....
It's just under 20' long and approx 7'6" wide (5.98m (L)2.27m (W). So will not fit in a car parking space.
Oh yes it will! (Enter pantomime dame ...)
Our last 3 vans have been a similar size/length and we very rarely have a prob especially if you park on perimeter where you can reverse and 'overhang' the rear of the space. Especially easy in supermarkets both home and abroad. Hardly ever see vans longer than ours tho unless they are using 2 spaces. Also means we don't need detailed route planning and can shop en-route whenever (she) decides!
Btw once on site I prefer not to drive anyway - something about open the wine and relax. We also find sites within easy walking distance to cafes, shops beaches etc - my wife has a mobility scooter and me and my dog can jog!
Enjoy - best of luck for today's Christmas present - final note "Home is where you park it" !!
Post last edited on 29/12/2016 16:40:47
------------- The older I get the better I used to be.
We've never had a problem parking anywhere yet, but then we haven't been into any city centres either.
We tend to tour and rarely stay more than 2 nights in the same place and "packing up" just involves putting the pots and pans away and dismantling the bed. We have a dog, so the bike option for trips out is no good for us.
I think places like Clacton are really missing a trick with their attitude. When we find somewhere we can park overnight, we tend to eat out, have a few drinks and often linger and do some shopping in the morning. When we pay for a site, we tend to cook a meal and stay at the site.
Places like Appledore (N Devon), where you can camp overnight for £5, seem to do well from it as there are often quite a few MHs overnighting in the car park. If MHers only spend another £10 pppn when they stop there, that must add a fair bit to the local economy over a year. (It's also a lovely place to stop - you can hear the river lapping at the harbour wall from your bed if you get a good spot)
fran1000, I do take your point about local spend but I do also think that visitors need to take into account local amenity - residents and businesses on sea fronts in popular towns may have motor homes and caravans parked up for at least four months - it doesn't matter if the units come and go - they'll be replaced by others. I know some establishments on our Main Street have had visitors complaining that they don't want their view blocked at dinner or breakfast by a large vehicle hard up on the pavement outside. These people are also visitors (and paying a lot more for their stay) and inconsiderate parking means dissatisfied clientele. This is one of the reasons we locals are trying to come up with a practical solution.
I would have thought Clacton could come up with a reasonable compromise but then it's 45 years since I last was there!! However, for places like Tobermory where Main Street is not just the shopping street but has residential flats and ferry access (which is why it cannot be a pedestrian precinct or a 20mph official zone), it's not feasible.
There are in some seaside places other issues such as landownership that may preclude Councils where land is shared on a car park, from doing anything. We also have Crown Estate and Harbour ownership issues that come into the equation.
Sorry, Fran, this is not personally directed at you! It was just an attempt to explain why some places have issues.
------------- " When I die I don`t want my life to flash before me in an instant, I want it to be a 3 hour epic !"
Amazing family weekend with old steam engines, classic car displays, market stalls, and full catering and bar. And camping on site - Save £25 by booking in advance.
Topic: Getting around while on holiday
I am kidding of course, it does seem to do the job for other less deserving folk though. 
