Bikers to fight Mansfield pay and display fine

Chloe Porter was ticketed by a warden while parking her Suzuki at Water Meadows leisure centre in Mansfield while she used the gym.

Backed by her boyfriend’s mother, Michelle Oliver, who is also a regular biker, the pair say they will now go to court if need be to fight their case.

Michelle, from Bilsthorpe, said: “It’s ridiculous. Most car parks are free to motorcyclists because if you pay for a parking ticket where are you supposed to put it without it either being blown away or someone pinching it?

“That’s the reason most are free.

“The woman at Water Meadows told her she should get a pouch to put it in – I’ve been biking for years and I’ve never even heard of one, never mind buy one.”

However, Mansfield District Council is refusing to back down, saying it provides designated motorcycle areas to park for free and if bikers choose to park in regular car-parking bays, they need a ticket.

The council said tickets can be bought by calling a phone number for its Ringo service, where the motorcyclist provides 
their number plate which can be checked by traffic wardens.

However, Mrs Oliver said there is nothing on the parking notice board outlining where motorcycles should park or mentioning the special telephone number.

And she said the cycling bays are simply not big enough to park motorbikes.

Mrs Oliver said: “You can barely get your handlebars through gaps.

“We’ll argue this all the way to court if we have to. We have to stand up against this, too many people would just pay.”

The British Motorcycle Federation said it comes across motorcycle parking issues on a daily basis all over the country.

Graeme Hay, federation spokesman, said: “There’s two key problems, the first being there’s a different approach in every local authority. Another constant problem is there’s a lack of signage clarity to what is expected and what is required.

“If the terms of parking are not made clear, then the British Motorcycle Federation would support the rider.”