Parking in Bath - height restrictions (1 Viewer)

Feb 4, 2010
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I'm off to catch a bit of the Bath music festival this weekend (jazz......mmm.....nice :coolthumb:) and it's been a while since I've been there. In fact I don't recall parking there before, just driving through or walking around (when I was at uni.)

The Doblo will fit in a normal car parking space, but I need to avoid height barriers. Any advice on the best parking near the city centre, or should I go for the park-and-ride?

Thanks
 

AdgeRas

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Park and Ride is good in Bath, but there are also car parks down near the river close to the new bus station that have no height barriers that I know of.

I do not know if you normally find multi story car parks a problem, but the only car park I can think of that you would have an issue with is the car park UNDER Waitrose, which I am sure would be a bit low.

Have fun.


Adge
 

GJH

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Bath council told me that all their car parks have height barriers - see Here. They also say, on their web site Link Removed that "Camper Van style vehicles are not permitted to park in car parks. They can however park at the Riverside Coach Park or Odd Down Park & Ride".

As your Doblo is a bit of an in-between which might be interpreted as a car or a "camper van style vehicle" it might be worth contacting the council for advice, just to be on the safe side. There are phone, fax and e-mail contact details on the council web site page I mentioned above. I've found them very helpful in the past.

Graham

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lebesset

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surely your vehicle is not over 2 metres in height ?
why no height barriers ?

forget the camper van style bit , it won't be recognised as that !
 
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1_man_and_his_dob(lo)
Feb 4, 2010
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I do not know if you normally find multi story car parks a problem, but the only car park I can think of that you would have an issue with is the car park UNDER Waitrose, which I am sure would be a bit low.

Ah yes, I remember Waitrose.....and no, I won't risk that one.

I've been pretty lucky so far - my only "wrong turn" was recently in Weston-super-Mare, when I made the mistake of blindly following the blue 'P' direction signs to a multi-storey with a 1.8m barrier :Eeek: Fortunately there was an easy escape route...
 
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1_man_and_his_dob(lo)
Feb 4, 2010
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surely your vehicle is not over 2 metres in height ?
why no height barriers ?

It's a high-top and just over 2 metres tall :Sad:

forget the camper van style bit , it won't be recognised as that !
I think the "Danbury Motorcaravans" logo and sun canopy on the side might just give it away :roflmto:

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AdgeRas

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Ah yes, I remember Waitrose.....and no, I won't risk that one.

I've been pretty lucky so far - my only "wrong turn" was recently in Weston-super-Mare, when I made the mistake of blindly following the blue 'P' direction signs to a multi-storey with a 1.8m barrier :Eeek: Fortunately there was an easy escape route...

I know you are referring to Blue P as in the P for Parking, but it makes me so mad that councils put height barriers so low, when you realise that Motability provide some disabled wheel chair users with 'heightened' vehicles not disimilar to yours vehicle.

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lebesset

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I used to have a pop top motorhome that was 2.10 metres high

never found a 2 metre height barrier I couldn't get under , always checked though , there is always a first one

plenty of vans with awnings now ! and you can always put stickers over the name , not that I would personally , it's not a camping car , it's a mini- camping car :ROFLMAO:
 

estcres

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I have parked at the Riverside Coach park on several occasions, right in the City Centre, never had any problems or adverse comments.

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JJ

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The Riverside Coach park allows motorhomes on it.

There is a car park by the police station where the upper level has no height restriction (but I reckon you would have to be up with the larks to find a space on it) but the huge car park by Victoria Park has no height restrictions and I often see largish motorhomes on it.

There is also a new underground carpark under the new shopping centre by the bus station which I will check the height of as I pass it to work this evening...

I also wonder if they run the Park and Ride buses later than usual during the Festival (they usually stop at 7.30pm).

JJ
 
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1_man_and_his_dob(lo)
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I know you are referring to Blue P as in the P for Parking, but it makes me so mad that councils put height barriers so low, when you realise that Motability provide some disabled wheel chair users with 'heightened' vehicles not disimilar to yours vehicle.

I've seen a few high-top Doblos being used for wheel chair use, and a lot more as taxis, presumably also kitted out for wheel chair use. You'd think that councils would twig that 2 meter barriers are going to stop this sort of vehicle. :Sad:
 
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1_man_and_his_dob(lo)
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Thanks everyone (particularly the on-the-spot research JJ)...it's looking like:

1. Victoria Park
2. Riverside
3. Park & Ride

because I might do some serious shopping and don't want to be lugging it back on a P&R bus if at all possible.

Down at the C&CC site at Mendips, Cheddar at the moment - walking around the Priddy area today, came across a Forestry Commission site....6'5" height barrier! :Angry:
 
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1_man_and_his_dob(lo)
Feb 4, 2010
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OK, so I drove into Bath from the Mendips, went straight through the Riverside car park 'cos it was full of buses with no MHs in sight. There was a big sign saying "no cars", so I decided to avoid any confusion with the Doblo and ended up in Charlotte St long stay car park. No height barriers, but the entry I used was quite tight - you take a ticket and pay when you leave.

Bath council kindly replied today and suggested I use Charlotte St....6 days after I sent my query, which pointed out I was visiting last weekend. Ah...the wonders of modern communication :Doh:
 
Aug 27, 2009
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Bath council told me that all their car parks have height barriers - see Here. They also say, on their web site Link Removed that "Camper Van style vehicles are not permitted to park in car parks. They can however park at the Riverside Coach Park or Odd Down Park & Ride".
As your Doblo is a bit of an in-between which might be interpreted as a car or a "camper van style vehicle" it might be worth contacting the council for advice, just to be on the safe side. There are phone, fax and e-mail contact details on the council web site page I mentioned above. I've found them very helpful in the past.Graham

If it has an identical footprint to a car, if it fits under the height restriction, if it is being used purely for transportation of passengers to and from the car park, if it is not causing a nuisance in any way. Then to bar it would be total discrimination. Bit like banning all fords because you prefer a Nissan. I think that their reference to campervan type vehicles is more of to do with vehicles that over hang the allotted parking space or want to set up home in what is an area for parking a given number of vehicles for access to their town.

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GJH

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If it has an identical footprint to a car, if it fits under the height restriction, if it is being used purely for transportation of passengers to and from the car park, if it is not causing a nuisance in any way. Then to bar it would be total discrimination. Bit like banning all fords because you prefer a Nissan. I think that their reference to campervan type vehicles is more of to do with vehicles that over hang the allotted parking space or want to set up home in what is an area for parking a given number of vehicles for access to their town.

I think you're probably right about the meaning of camper van but it wasn't totally clear from the information to hand at the time and that lack of clarity could also cause confusion for any individual parking attendant simply because the Doblo in question is a bit of an in-between which might be interpreted as a car or a "camper van style vehicle".

That is why I recommended "contacting the council for advice, just to be on the safe side".

As a business analyst I always worked on the premise that if you ask a question you may not receive the answer you expect or want but at least you have an answer to work with - but if you don't ask the question you can only speculate and can easily go wrong :Smile:

Graham
 
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That is why I recommended "contacting the council for advice, just to be on the safe side".
As a business analyst I always worked on the premise that if you ask a question you may not receive the answer you expect or want but at least you have an answer to work with - but if you don't ask the question you can only speculate and can easily go wrong :Smile:
Graham
That sounds like good advice GJH. I think that you would also have to think about the question you put to the council, bit like planning referendum if you ask the question in the right manor then you will get the answer you desire. Don’t begin with can I park my camper van in your car park.:ROFLMAO:

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GJH

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That sounds like good advice GJH. I think that you would also have to think about the question you put to the council, bit like planning referendum if you ask the question in the right manor then you will get the answer you desire. Don’t begin with can I park my camper van in your car park.:ROFLMAO:

On the contrary Buttons, most of my hundreds of e-mails to councils for the web site have been along the lines of "where can motorhomes park in your fair town?" ::bigsmile:

One or two have subsequently been followd up with "why can't I park there, you're discriminating?" :roflmto:

Graham
 
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1_man_and_his_dob(lo)
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I think you're probably right about the meaning of camper van but it wasn't totally clear from the information to hand at the time and that lack of clarity could also cause confusion for any individual parking attendant simply because the Doblo in question is a bit of an in-between which might be interpreted as a car or a "camper van style vehicle".

It's not just councils that might have a problem with my Doblo. I got into a chat with one of the wardens at a C&CC site recently, and he mentioned the fact that the vehicle is very close to not being classified as a campervan. Apparently (according to the C&CC rules) it must have a full-length bed (it does) and with the bed rolled out I must be able to demonstrate that I can stand up and change in the vehicle :Eeek:.

If I couldn't it would be classed as a normal van and I would have to carry a tent to allow me to change. Apparently this results from people turning up in cars, trying to change in them and...quote...."having their :moon: hanging out the window".

I won't go into all the flaws in that rule....suffice to say I can change standing-up with the bed out (just) but 99.9% of the time I don't because there are easier ways and nobody can see because the Doblo has curtains on all the windows.
 
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1_man_and_his_dob(lo)
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I think that their reference to campervan type vehicles is more of to do with vehicles that over hang the allotted parking space or want to set up home in what is an area for parking a given number of vehicles for access to their town.

In which case the 2 coachbuilds parked in the cricket club car park opposite the Pavilion on Saturday afternoon were pushing their luck, particularly as the "no campervans" sign was unmissable.

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Aug 27, 2009
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It's not just councils that might have a problem with my Doblo. I got into a chat with one of the wardens at a C&CC site recently, and he mentioned the fact that the vehicle is very close to not being classified as a campervan. Apparently (according to the C&CC rules) it must have a full-length bed (it does) and with the bed rolled out I must be able to demonstrate that I can stand up and change in the vehicle :Eeek:.

If I couldn't it would be classed as a normal van and I would have to carry a tent to allow me to change. Apparently this results from people turning up in cars, trying to change in them and...quote...."having their :moon: hanging out the window".

I won't go into all the flaws in that rule....suffice to say I can change standing-up with the bed out (just) but 99.9% of the time I don't because there are easier ways and nobody can see because the Doblo has curtains on all the windows.

Could I ask what dvla taxation class it is. Is it classified as a motor home?
When I was looking for my van the main requirement was that it was less than 2m. It comes in at 1.98m so fits under 99% of height barriers.

When I purchased the van it was taxed on the CO2 band F so in theory it wasn’t a motor home, however, after 2 years of debate with the dvla my vehicle was reclassified as a motor home with a saving of £200 a year. As far as the C&cc criteria I think it would fail so I am a bit confused.
This could also effect your speed limit you have for your vehicle.
 
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1_man_and_his_dob(lo)
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Could I ask what dvla taxation class it is. Is it classified as a motor home?

No....diesel car. I contacted Danbury because I assumed this was wrong....but apparently not because they checked with the DVLA again recently. So I have a vehicle that says "Danbury Motorhomes" on the side and is classed by Danbury and the motohome magazines as a motorhome, but is classed by the DVLA as a diesel car with body type MPV.

You can see where the confusion could occur when I turn up at a C&CC site, but so far it's been fine, as demonstrated again the last few days at the extremely busy but nice Hereford site. I've stayed 5 times so far at C&CC sites and the subject has only been brought up once.

When I purchased the van it was taxed on the CO2 band F so in theory it wasn’t a motor home, however, after 2 years of debate with the dvla my vehicle was reclassified as a motor home with a saving of £200 a year.
I believe my little 1.3 diesel means I pay £125 a year, so I think I'm better off being taxed as a car?

As far as the C&cc criteria I think it would fail so I am a bit confused.
That's why the rule is silly. Looking at your avatar and MH type I don't think you'd have anything to worry about - there were a number of T2 and T5 vans at Hereford. I reckon they needed some tests to stop people turning up and sleeping in cars, but the criteria they came up with could technically rule out MHs. IMHO they would never check yours because they'll be looking for small vans and cars.
 

Diamondcub

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Motorhome parking in Bath

This is what I found today whilst scouring the Bath council website today -
Landsdown Park & Ride is unrestricted height - BA1 9BJ

Riverside Coach Park - Riverside Coach Park, Avon Street, Bath, BA1 1UE
Vehicles that can park in Riverside Coach Park Coaches Lorries Camper vans Cost of parking in Riverside Coach Park Length of Stay Charge 2 Hours £5 4 Hours £8 6 Hours £11 8 Hours £14 Over 8 Hours £16 Overnight if parked during the day with an 'over 8 hours' ticket Free Overnight without an
 

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