Discriminating car parks?

[Spit-Fire]

(warning bit of a long read bare with me)

I thought id share my situation with other bikers to see if its just me or am i being discriminated against for riding a motorcycle.

My work provides a large secure (barriers, manned, off site location) car park for staff and associated companies members of staff.
i recently attempted to park my bike in the above car-park and was told by one of the security guys i couldn't park there... so obviously i enquired why?. i was told their was dedicated bike bay closer to to the actual building i work in. i responded "that's nice to know there is an alternative but that doesn't explain why i cant park here".
the bike bay that the security guard suggested is indeed closer but has its cons.
it isn't secure, it is for public use, leaving it more vulnerable, the lockers in work do not fit any of my gear (so i put my stuff in a mates boot), so i don't have as safe of a place for my valuables.
after a debate that made me late for work he finally allowed me to park after telling me "its not my fault if it gets stolen".

So today i planned to park in the above car park once again and was met at the barrier by the same security guard who as soon as i pulled up told me to go park at the other bay. i asked why?, he said no bike allowed here. i asked was their any signage or rules in writing that stated motorcycle were not permitted. he rambled on not giving any straight answers and went back to his booth to call his manager while i did the same thing (note today it was pissing down so this whole conversation lasted about 15mins and is taking place in the rain while i sit waterproof-less trying to use my phone with out getting it water damaged ). after ringing several of my managers and being told the same thing ("you know their is a bike bay closer?" ) and being passed from one manager to another as no one seemed to have a clue about the rules.
after about 30mins had passed and i had lost patients with my managements (the car park is managed buy an external company)i approached the gent and asked to speak to his manager, after some debate he gave me the number and i was put though to some one who also told me i couldn't park a motorcycle here. i asked why and was told "i don't know let me put you through to a manager" (i thought this was a manager ? ). placed on hold for 5 mins before a manager picks up and asked me "is it a bicycle or a motorcycle?" .... long story short he went on to tell me as long as the vehicle doesn't exceed the size of the provided space you can park what you like in it. after relying this to the security guard he then had the cheek to tell me i must ride around the barrier because he isn't coming out of his booth to open it (its not possible to ride around the barrier, instead i had to wait for a car to go through and tail behind it.

i return to the car-park after my shift to find 4 notice stickers holding a letter in place on my bike stating that "you are not allowed to park motorcycles in the car park (no explanation given) and that i should use the bay suggested signed
"car park manager".

is it just me or is it a bit unfair to provide car drivers with a safe secure, staffed parking facility with shuttle buses to take them to and from the building, while motorcyclist get a shared unsecured public bay with no where to put their equipment just because our method of transport has less wheels and a roof . ?
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they say the good die young... i say we just live faster

[herulach]

I'm going to guess you work at an airport - or at least I do and have a very similar situation.

To be honest the car park at our place isn't that secure, at least not on a bike, you could comfortably push a bike out of it and theres nothing to chain it to.

To be honest i'd rather have it in a public bike park thats got something solid to chain to, than in a car bay (where someone will inevitabily drive into it because they aren't paying attention and assume its an empty space).

If the park is access controlled and your company is paying for you a space in it then make a note of the times you've been refused entry, pass it to your boss, and assuming he gives a shit they can take it up. Unfortunately by making the guy stand around in the rain you've pretty much guaranteed you're never parking there again.
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YBR 125>FZS600

[plugger147]

Go to the hr department and see what they have to say, explain how you feel unfairly treated and that it's been the cause of you being late for work held up by not being able to freely park and get to work on good time and how you wouldn't feel comfortable leaving your bike in a public bay and your helmet and gear somewhere that they might be damaged as they don't provide a safe place for you to store them.
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Tristan the wrote: just whipped off my trousers to find a big bruise on my arse, caused by matt rear ending me...

[Spit-Fire]

[plugger147]

I'd do it anyway just to keep my arse clear of any reports of being late and make sure they were well aware of you being allowed to park there the first time then refused the second time, what happens if you want a reference the same hr department will tell whoever your timekeeping is unreliable...
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Tristan the wrote: just whipped off my trousers to find a big bruise on my arse, caused by matt rear ending me...

[raak]

Spitfire, its vehicle Apartheid.

its discrimination pure and simple.

both cars and motorcycles pay road tax so are entitled to use the roads equally,
so why should someone be able to say that Motorcyclists are NOT allowed to use a building built to house vehicles that use public roads.

Its not like its a size issue ie; coach or juggernaut.

the Bike takes less space, so should not interfere with the smooth running of the car park in any way.

I'm afraid its endemic and may well be the way of the future.

Westfield near us, let bikes park for free (But have NO bike bays )
so very nice thank you westfield .
...but when leaving the ticket will NOT raise the barrier, as bikers ticket are not accepted as we don't pay..

So after a while you press the button for assistance (with the car behind, tooting ever so gently in impatience )
and are told you have to move over to lane 4 ( i think) but their is no prior sign warning of this.

So you maneuver back out, smiling sweetly in embarrassment and avoid the revving car tooting behind you, and make you way over to lane 4,
only to find this will not be raised either, but the barrier is marginally shorter then the others,
so you must weave in between the barrier and the traffic island with out scratching or damaging the bike.....

which all adds to that 'Special customer Shopping experience' they are so desperate to give us and keep us coming back for more...

i also notice this with how well planned supermarket car parks are for cars, and cycles,
yet how its almost an after thought where they put the space for motorcycles and scooters (if they even bother having one )

One near me used to allow bikes to park on the pavement outside, but once they increased the frontage space,
they decided a dedicated bay for motorcycles was needed but have placed it as far away from the store entrance as possible.
it's like they don't want us parking there at all, yet my money is as welcome in the tills as anyone else's.

I just F**k off the car drivers by using a car space instead, near the store entrance.

sure to get a ticket or a telling off at some point, but am strangely looking forward to that row....


Stand your ground INSIST on being allowed to park and don't roll over...don't let the faceless ones discriminate against us without a fight.

let them know that as a group, Motorcyclist will NOT be sitting at the back of the bus
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Previous bikes: Suzuki GT250A / Yamaha DT125 / NTV Honda 650 // currently Suzuki RF900

[st3v3]

I'd simply warn him touching your bike, including leaving childish notes is not something he wants to do if he values his fingers.

Set off for work a little early and tail behind a car whenever you need to. This means you get in and you're not late.

Any problems then take it up with your boss and politely say that if the bike is parked in the closer bay the company is responsible for any loss or damage as they requested it being put there. Otherwise they clear you to use the further one and all is well.
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Roger wrote: Women don't get damp for clingy puppies. Get some better happy pills, hit the gym & buy a medallion the size of a dinner plate. Job done

[Wafer_Thin_Ham]

Did you get the name of the manager that told you that you're allowed to park in there?

If so this makes your life much easier. Go and explain this to HR and your situation.
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My Flickr

[Chalky.]

Just punch him in the throat next time.

[robbieguy2003]

I had a similar run in with a carpark lot at one of our offices. They are all little nazi bastards. They do what their superiors ask them to without even questioning it.

I like you're spirit for spending time pissing the guy off and fighting, but they are arseholes.

As Big Ham has said, get the name of the guy that said you could and ask for a letter, store it in your pocket and show said monkey the letter then the troll should let you past the barrier/bridge..

After my argument, I said hang on then, i'll tell the guy that pays the rent here that I cant come to his meeting (I was presenting something to the board) and he should delay it while I find somewhere other than the building he pays for to park..

Eventually spoke to said monkeys manager and he gave in.

I went back later to find a sticker - and not one of the nice ones on my bike seat, it was nearly the size of the entire seat. It wouldn't come off easily and in my view altered the safety of the vehicle - who can safely ride with a really slippy seat?

So I called the police to report criminal damage from the management compan, they checked who was on shift, gave a a warning and said monkey decided not to piss me off after that and was generally ok.

The one you have seems to be quite the ballbag though with a short term memory. I'd have a letter you can show him each day, if you have a camera phone you could do a facebook style self photo of you, him and the letter each day and eventually he might start to remember you
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Current Bikes: Honda CBR 600RR - '07, Suzuki GSX1250 FA ST '11
Old Bikes: Suzuki Intruder 125 LC - '2001, Honda CBR 600F - '92, Honda CBR 600RR - '03

[LordShaftesbu...]

[Spit-Fire]

[Germ]

Ask if the legal definition of the space is "a car parking bay" or if it's just down as "vehicle parking bay"......if it's the latter then surely they can't discriminate on those grounds?

[felicity]

It sounds like this is a private car park, in which case it doesn't matter whether you pay road tax or whether it's discrimination; if I want, I can build a private car pack that only allows three-wheeled cars to park, and there's nothing you can do about it. Of course that doesn't change the fact that they're being quite unreasonable, but I doubt you have any legal standing to challenge it.

(It would be different if the car park only allowed white people to park, but there's no law about "transport method discrimination".)

[Andy_Pagin]

I'd write to the car park management company and ask for a written copy of the terms & conditions for the use of that particular car park, perhaps start by asking your companies HR dept.
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They're coming to take me away, ho-ho, hee-hee, ha-haaa, hey-hey,
the men in white coats are coming to take me away.
Yamaha Vity -> YBR125 -> FZS600 Fazer -> FZ1-S Fazer

[Rogerborg]

This isn't difficult.

It's a private car park. You don't enjoy any right to park there, and you won't get anywhere arguing with the costumed clown in the booth. He is the God of his little realm, and your anguish sustains him.

The contract for parking is between the cark park goons and your company, not between the goons and you.

So get on to your management. Don't go off on one about discrimination, just say that you're an employee, you want to park your vehicle in the facilities that they're already paying for, and they need to get it sorted out. They're paying the money, they should be calling the shots.

If they won't do that, then there's sod all that you can do about it. Either buy a big chain and park in the public bay, or find a better employer.

It's not fair, but that's paid employment for you. It's a free market, nobody is forcing you to work there.
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Biking is 1/20th as dangerous as horse riding.
GONE: HN125-8, LF-250B, GPz 305, GPZ 500S, Burgman 400 // RIDING: F650GS (800 twin), Royal Enfield Bullet Electra 500 AVL, Ninja 250R because racebike

[Spit-Fire]

[Andy_Pagin]

What company is it (the car park management company)?
____________________
They're coming to take me away, ho-ho, hee-hee, ha-haaa, hey-hey,
the men in white coats are coming to take me away.
Yamaha Vity -> YBR125 -> FZS600 Fazer -> FZ1-S Fazer

[Spit-Fire]

still trying to find that out, from what iv gathered speaking to HR the car park is owned by my company and staffed by an external company so id assume my company make the rules . im just awaiting a copy of the terms and conditions to be emailed to me
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they say the good die young... i say we just live faster

[Spit-Fire]

got a copy of the terms and conditions :

4.3 Three wheeled vehicles including purpose built invalid carriages and motorcycle combinations are classified as cars and must be parked in any of the Car Parks with the appropriate Car Park windscreen disc displayed.

4.4 Cycles, motorcycles, scooters and other power operated two wheeled vehicles must be parked in the areas designated for that use and not in the marked vehicle spaces within the Car Parks. Failure to comply may result in the mode of transport described above being immobilised and a fee being charged to remove the detaining device.

i spoke to the people who's number is given at the bottom of the document and they advised i spoke to my manager as they agreed the area supplied at my place of work is public not privet (the area the terms and conditions speak of exist in some on the staff car parks but not mine (its basically a little hut with a rail to chain the bike to and a roof to keep them dry).

they said i should get my manager to speak to the people who can make the rules.... this seems so long winded now i feel to give up, but there are only a handful of bikers i feel like giving in would be agreeing that its ok to discriminate based on some as stupid as an amount of wheels.

doesn't help im still waiting for my almax to arrive so i don't have a trusted lock to use at the public bay anyway.
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they say the good die young... i say we just live faster

[dogbot]

I park my bike in a public place every day without a lock, nothing has ever happend to it.

They're not discriminating against you, though, I'm afraid. Those Ts&Cs? You almost certainly tacitly agree to those by using their car park.

[Andy_Pagin]

[Spit-Fire]

[Andy_Pagin]

Bottom line is it's a private car park, their rules, take it or leave it.
I can't somehow see your company going to the trouble of re-negotiating their contract with the car park managers to please you unless you're in the position to quit & leave them screwed by doing so.

To re-iterate, I think it's a bloody stupid policy.
____________________
They're coming to take me away, ho-ho, hee-hee, ha-haaa, hey-hey,
the men in white coats are coming to take me away.
Yamaha Vity -> YBR125 -> FZS600 Fazer -> FZ1-S Fazer

[Chalky.]

I'd speak to your MD or manager in charge of the contract with the parking company.

They'll easily be able to get the company to allow you to park there, the parking company won't risk losing the contract etc.

I'd talk to them in their office, say something along the lines of

I know it's a bit silly... I'm very attached to my bike, don't want it to be stolen like some have had in the bike bay... leave you gear in your mate's car...

Sorted.