“I wasn't going to comment any further on this, but after looking at the junction, I felt that I just had to add to this debate.

All the cars parked at the junction that would interfere with buses turning round are ILLEGALLY parked. You are not permitted, under the Road Traffic Regulations Act 1984 to park within 10 metres (32 feet) of any junction. This would cover the whole of the junction and would mean that no one could park there and stop the buses from turning. This includes any cars with Blue Badges.

The Police and/or Local Authority would be perfectly entitled to remove any vehicles parked at the junction.

ANON and Alex this is FACT. A FACT that means those that object to just TWO buses a day and choose to be 'difficult' could have their cars towed and have to pay a recovery fee of in excess of £100. If a car is towed twice then the owner could have their car confiscated, FACT.”

“I agree Jackie - the residents each have their own garden so if seeing their beloved roses means that much to them they should utilise their own space and not this area. It's pathetic if you ask me. They really need to get out more if they think that this is actually newsworthy!!”

“Now a little bit of fencing has appeared on it with a few bamboo sticks....it's not provately owned is it...surely the council should be making alterations to it not residents?”

“Well ANON and Alex, my child attends Oasis Academy and if, god forbid, he was to get injured due to your irresponsible parking over such a trvial matter then I would be holding you responsible.”

“Having lived in the area for 17 years I'm sure I have my facts correct in that Lacey Dr is a PUBLIC road and not privately maintained.??

As a motorist I am not allowed to cause an obstruction on a public road so why is this being allowed in Lacey Drive?

There are not signs indicating this is a retirement complex or a gated community, or private road, it's a public highway and thoroughfare. (Unless my A-Z and knowledge of every road in this area is completely wrong).

A lot of other Croydon residents aren't fortunate enough to have a parking space let alone a drive outside their home.

Maybe some have too much time on their hands with nothing better to do than twitch neatly measured pleated net curtains and don't want the world to go on around them.”

“I have to agree with all the comments on here. The 2 residents in their crusade to remove buses from Lacey Drive have created an accident waiting to happen.

If someone dies blood will be on your hands.”

“The old saying "be careful what you wish for" spings to mind here.
The standard and selection of SOME bus drivers leaves a lot to be desired. However, it isn't practical nor safe to expect drivers to have to carry out a reversing manouvre in a residential road on a routine basis.
I have often encountered situations where a bus needs to reverse on main roads, but the driver refuses, stating that they are not allowed to reverse unsupervised. So there may be some truth in this drivers comments.
Some residents may just force the buses to pick up on the
main road instead by using antagonistic parking methods. I suspect this will then leave them complaining about noisy pupils the pupils walking past their house every day.”

“Well people I am sorry to say this, but it is clear to any decent human being that the real issues here are bigotry, selfishness, arrogance and ignorance. Mr Anon, Mr I got a digital camera for Christmas and the rest of the Lacy Dr Waffen are on a "whatever means possible" campaign to stop the buses and the "lazy" drivers providing a sevice to the CHILDREN at the local school.

They think nothing of decent people losing their jobs in a recession (yes we are still in one). They do not care that LIVES of vulnerale people are being put at risk. They do not care that this service relieves pressure on local traffic and public transport. They do not care that it is their actions that have ruined the rose bush for the rest of the community.

What they do care about is that 2 buses a day stop on their pituresque, rose bush, bungalow, retired middle class wonderland road. Blighting the wonderful scene, dragging down the image and reputation of what they see as "OUR" beautiful road. They will say they have every right, and go to great lenghts to stress what they are doing is legal. But I find their deception reveals their true agenda. Why did they not tell the reporter " we park there on purpose, making it impossible for the buses to turn without digging up the rose garden"? maybe because the paper or bus company would not have given them the time of day? I find their threats of "STRICTEST PUNISHMENT", photo records and cyber monitering slighty disturbing. Sounds like an organisation in action about 70 years ago and as I write this I am expecting to be dragged from my home and executed by firing squad! I also very much hope that this has nothing to do with the ethnicity of the drivers or children from the school. It does seem we have unaccepting attitudes at work here so it wouldn't suprise me.”

“Anon, your sheer bl**dy mindedness and arrogance towards this subjuct is nothing short of infuriating. We have all seen the pictures of Lacey Drive and the parking courtesy of Alex. One picture clearly shows Alex standing in front of the rose garden and behind him are two cars parked adjacent to the rose garden, the picture also shows the roads either side of these cars being completely clear for as far and wide as the picture shows, it also shows that these cars are not parked outside someones home but to the side, it further shows that the white vehicle is parked on the junction and as such is parked illegally. This picture clearly shows that there are any number of other places that residents can choose to park, but choose not to. Your quest is to rid Lacey Drive of buses period. Through failed attempts to get your plight heard through TFL and the local authority you and other residents took it upon yourselves to cause as much disruption to this service as you were physically and legally able to. Thus resulting in the destruction to the rose garden. Still having not been successful in your quest to rid Lacey Drive of buses you are now trying another angel to get the bus service diverted away from Lacey Drive. You think that if you can prove that the buses are the cause of all the destruction to the area they serve and as such have to pay for any damage year after year after year then they will decide that Lacey Drive is not an appropriate road to use and abandon the route. The road and rose garden are owned by the local authority and as such is theres to do with what they wish. If you don't like this then you need to go through the proper channels and the way you are going presently is not the way to go. What's infuriating me is that as a commuter I pay out an extortionate amount of money every year for myself and my 2 sons to travel by public transport. Transport that by anyones standards is substandard for what we pay, I do not have a choice, I work in the city and as such have to pay to be herded in and treated worse than cattle. This extortionate amount increases every year due to, amongst other things, claims against transport companies for damage to private property. What you and your NIMBY's are failing to grasp is that someone has to pay for the damage that you are falsely claiming for and will have to continue to pay year after year, so it is very easy for Arriva to except responsibility to keep good PR as it is us the commuter that has to shell out. If your case were a genuine one. If in the picture it showed parked vehicles all around and proof that there were no other parking options then your plight would be just. All the pictures proved was that you are a bunch of unco-operative, inconsiderate, lie if need be to get what you want NIMBY's who are prepared to destroy their own area they claim to love to get what they want and let someone else pick up the bill. That being the likes of me”

“ANON Old Coulsdon

I do not believe that I have made false claims, if I have then I apologise. From what I have read in the various articles about this subject, it would appear that some residents are deliberately parking their cars in the road in order to make it impossible, or very difficult, to negotiate this junction and therefore stop buses from using Lacey Drive, all for the sake of just two buses a day (or is that four, two in the morning and two in the afternoon). To a complete outsider this seems very petty.

As for Arriva saying that their drivers can reverse in this residential road, I'm not denying that they have said that, but it is generally accepted that you should not reverse in an area where the general public have full access in a vehicle, such as a bus, if you cannot see what is behind you. What Bus Driver and others have said, is perfectly correct.

If there is an accident, with a child running behind the bus and the driver unable to see behind them, there would be an invetsigation. The court would want to know why the driver was reversing without a banksman and, as has been recorded here, his employers have instructed him to follow, what is generally regarded as, unsafe working practices, then the employers COULD be charged in addition to the driver.

IF it could be shown that one of the contributary factors to the accident were cars parked deliberately in the road to make the manouvering of buses difficult, the owners of said vehicles could also be called to court. This is a FACT.

Whether it would result in a custodial sentence for the residents, is unlikely, but it is nevertheless possible that this could happen. There have been corporate manslaughter cases where managing directors have been sent to prison, for allowing unsafe practices.

I doubt that I will make any further contributions to this story, I seem to be having to explain myself too much, and some people don't actually read, or want to read, what is actually being said.”