This seems to be the fella


In the middle of the picture? On top of the pole? See the little ball-type camera? 

This appears to be the camera which, it turns out, is being used for parking enforcement on Wanstead High Street. 

There was debate here earlier this week after reader Lloyd reported getting a ticket for dropping someone off while stopping in the bus stop area outside Wanstead Pharmacy. Lloyd was not contesting the fairness of getting a ticket, though some people took it that way. He was pointing out that rules are being enforced by camera as well as by traffic warden, and it’s surely better that everyone knows that so that they won’t make the same mistake.

8 thoughts on “This seems to be the fella”

  1. Very innovative.

    Rather than spend our Hard Earned Council Tax on wardens or cars, I think it is clever to save money on using such devices.

    Now we are all aware that this is the enforcer, maybe we should all be vigilant and use the High Street as we would expect people from outside the area.

    1. The cctv camera was not listed on the website like other cameras are and I was told that it didn’t have to be. So what is the purpose of the list if it is ok to leave it incomplete?. Data subjects have a right to know what it is the data controller is trying to do in the public interest. There is clearly a need for the code of ethics to be in the public domain. Misuse of cctv images is a criminal offence. Cut and paste of disparite images is a PCN stitchup and is not admissable as evidence in a bona fide court of law, e.g. the London Tribunal for dealing with contraventions.

      There is now an urgent need for the Council to publish a bona fide list of dropping off/pickup points for bona fide shoppers and taxpayers. If there are none left in the borough then the council should have the decency to say so loudly and clearly.

      1. There’s plenty of spaces clearly marked. There’s signs showing when single yellow lines are allowed to be parked on. There’s even a car park. If anybody has any confusion that a bus stop with big yellow words written on the tarmac is not allowed then they should hand their license back.

        And tbh I’m more worried about the death and injury in the borough from badly driven cars than I am from cctv who are giving out fines to those caught.

        1. I reject the thrust of the line taken. That bus stop has an extension that overlaps the accessway by one metre. The yellow line is an anomaly and needs to be clarified as to what authority installed it and why. This should be clearly visible on the cctv footage, so why are we not been told?
          The yellow line extension was ignored by three public service drivers, viz. a bus driver, a police driver and a dustcart driver. What is it they know that we the cash cow motorists have not yet been told?
          While I accept that a vehicle other than a bus or other public service vehicle parked with lawful authority and with ‘four wheels in the bus stop’ is a contravention even if the driver is in the vehicle with the engine running, that didn’t stop the council from taking a cctv image of a reg from a vehicle outside the bus stop and linking it to a vehicle in contravention in the bus stop and asking the innocent driver to pay £55 for someone else’s ticket. The council claimed that they issued a PCN to the guilty party. So two PCN’s were issued for the same contravention, one real and one imaginary. That’s a nice little earner then! There should be an extraordinary public audit of these two PCN’s. An attempt was made by the council to swap the contravention with another one also with no good provenance.
          A little knowledge is a dangerous thing so I hope you will understand my concern about what is actually happening!

  2. Councils and surveillance don’t go well together.

    I hope that how these cameras may be used is clearly defined and subject to some form of oversight.

  3. Fantastic news. Let’s hope it stops those who think it’s fine to park on double yellow, bus stops and disabled spots either by fining them or by making them realise their selfish actions are liable to get a fine.

    This will be a step forward in making the over-whelming majority of high street users who walk, cycle, public transport or have enough decency to park in the correct place far more pleasurable. On the odd occasions I drive there I’ve never had a problem parking legitimately down the side roads or in the car park and happily walked the 60 seconds it takes me to get back to the high street

    1. I’m with Mark on this one. Unless there is a policy of no tolerance regarding parking in the bus stop on the High Street there will always be cars blocking it, forcing the buses to stop in the middle of the road, holding up the traffic and making it necessary for passengers to find their way between the parked cars to get on the bus, particularly difficult for people with children in buggies, people using wheelchairs, or with limited mobility. Why should they be inconvenienced for the benefit of people in cars who “just wanted to pop a letter in the box” or “just wanted to pick up a prescription from the chemists”? However the policy should include public service vehicles as well as private cars.

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