Monday, Feb 05, 2007 at 09:24
Don't they just love it.
I'm in the tree
clearing industry and the company that I subby for have many council contracts east of
Melbourne clearing the naturestrip trees from over head powerlines and uplifting for traffic and pedestrians.
The boys go along in the cherry picker, cut the trees, and I follow along and chip up the branches.
In the past 2 years we have been booked once ( I didn't see the inspector put the ticket on the windscreen) for
parking in a no standing zone whilst performing this task for the very same council who hired the inspectors to book us. At the time I would have been standing behind the truck feeding branches into the machine. So no doubt he would have seen and heard us working and simply walked to the front of the truck and wrote out a ticket when it should have been obvious to him what we were doing.
We wrote a short and too the point letter to the council and they big heartedly said that we wouldn't have to pay the fine THIS TIME. That's fortunate for them because they may have found a lot of there prize trees suddenly looking very sick.
Another time, different council, an inspector come up behind us whilst doing the job and said how long are you going to be here. We said, we shall be here for as long as it takes us and not a moment sooner. Your (the inspector's) council has employed us to cut the trees and I would like to know on whose authority you are acting on in requesting that we move on. I asked him who his superior was so that I could remind him that under the Tree
clearing code of Practice, we are acting under a Victorian Govt. Statute of Authority that is above his Local government
parking restrictions, so long as we abide by the Vic Roads OH&S requirements.
He would not give me the person's name that I requested and just told us in no uncertain terms that he wanted us gone.
Now we have been doing this council's trees for years and know that if there is a problem during the day with say clear ways, school pick ups and the like, we can adjust our time at the site to eliminate any traffic disruptions. But none existed in this case, he was simply some a***hole trying to flex his muscles. He was a very big man and was no doubt used to pushing small people around. Today we pushed back and certainly made sure we were in no hurry.
On the other side of the coin, however, is my brother's story.
He was involved in the construction of the Collins Place Twin Towers project,
Melbourne, I think in the mid-late 70s. The boys on the job there had a very early start and used to
park where they could and if I remember correctly they weren't too concerned about any time limitations. They were members of the BLF (I'm not condoning this by the way) and considered themselves untouchable.
In those days, the traffic nazis used to get around in little Morris Mini mokes, if you can remember those with the rag tops.
The boys starting get booked for staying too long at there
parking spots and they weren't happy, so they had there superiors request the Melb. City Council to show some slack and let them stay longer (I know what your thinking) without any infringement. The council declined their request.
So what the boys did was wait until the Mokes pulled up and the traffic boys walked off. The building boys would then starting playing the "let's drop a brick on the mokes" game. I know what your thinking, I'm just telling you what happened.
However, the traffic boys persisted only too find later on that when they came back to get into their mokes there was no room for them as the vehicle had been filled with concrete.
Parking was never a problem for the entire area after that until the building was finished.
True story. One day when someone starts talking about VIc Rail I have some good accounts to tell from another brother who was a station master for 40 years.
Cheers.
AnswerID:
219820
Follow Up By: Member - JohnR (Vic)&Moses - Monday, Feb 05, 2007 at 10:02
Monday, Feb 05, 2007 at 10:02
GU, I spent three weeks at the Commonwealth Games last March doing work for the event sponsored by the State in the Games Village. One afternoon I had to
park on the street - Sunday, late. I put some money in the meter and went to get some more change but was a little slower than I imagined but showed good faith and inserted the money on my return. I didn't find the sticker until a week later when I had to operate the wipers.
Despite a good pleading letter it was a "pay yur $50 mate" response. I don't know how much that volunteering effort cost me but the city doesn't care two hoots if it's more!
FollowupID:
480417
Follow Up By: F4Phantom - Monday, Feb 05, 2007 at 13:36
Monday, Feb 05, 2007 at 13:36
I know there are millions of stories like these but I had to tell this one.
Worked at a
shop on bridge rd, outside the front of the
shop is a loading
sign so we can unload goods into the
shop, the guy walks up as I am unloading, tells me I am going to get a fine, I explain that this is my
shop and I am unloading. He does not care, I say fine and get in the car to move for him, he starts the ticket writing process, I start to drive away, he FOLLOWS ME ONTO THE STREET TO GET THE CARS DETAILS WHEN I WAS OUT OF THE
PARK!!! I get a ticket weeks later. I paid it in full no questions, you cant escape from these people. The only way to do it is no one in all of vic ever pays a ticket, the cant throw the whole
population in jail can they?
FollowupID:
480461