Driver blasted for parking on MOTORWAY to avoid £6 airport pick-up fee

A DRIVER has been blasted for parking on a motorway hard shoulder to avoid paying a £6 airport pick-up fee.

Officers from the North West Motorway Police said the driver parked his Citroen C4 Cactus just outside Manchester Airport and was “waiting to collect people”.

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According to the Manchester Evening News, a force spokesperson took to Twitter saying: “Driver seen by ME54 stopped on hard shoulder at Manchester Airport waiting to collect people – TOR [Traffic Offence Report] issued.”

Drivers are only allowed to stop on a hard shoulder in an emergency or if being told to by police.

Pulling over for any other reason could see you slapped with a £100 fine and three penalty points.

Readers slammed the driver.

One person tweeted: “This seems to happen often enough that it should be obvious that something needs to be done about short term parking for pick ups at the airport.”

Another wrote: “I drive a bus around the airport and it’s ridiculous how so many people park on the hard shoulder, roundabouts within road traffic cones, where the building works happening, (and) on the pavements next to the entrance of the bus station. (They) need to put some cameras up and get people fined.”

It comes as drivers were forced to do a double take as they spotted a group enjoying a picnic on a fully laid dining table in a layby – complete with a lamp and candles.

Stunned motorists couldn’t believe their eyes as six people boldly – and bizarrely – tucked into a spot of lunch by the side of a road in Bristol.

The unbothered group were pictured sitting behind a large grey SUV in a layby along Portway around a laid up dining table.

A wicker picnic basket can be spotted on the floor – with out of place the set up including a lamp, a table cloth and even candles.

According to a witness, he saw the group enjoying their unusual lunch at about 2.40pm on Friday, reports BristolLive.

He said amused drivers honked their horns as they passed them, with the diners turning to wave at them.

And a woman was fined £40 for parking in Asda for “five hours” despite only being there for 10 minutes.

Courtney Brown, who lives in Darwen, Lancashire said her and her partner were fined £40 after he parked outside the shop twice in one day.

Courtney said her partner had stopped for five minutes each time he went to the Asda.

She told Lancs Live: “My partner went to Asda for my baby’s nappies in the morning, parked up and left after five minutes.

“Later on, I forgot something we needed, so he went back and then came home again after five minutes of being there.

“He then received a fine saying he had been there for five hours when this was not true. We paid the fine as it was a threatening letter, saying it would go higher.”

Weeks later the couple received the same letter.

Courtney added: “My partner emailed them and they didn’t even check anything, they just dropped it. It seems they are charging people for no reason, it seems like a con.

“We have lost money from the first time unfortunately, as we paid it so it didn’t extend, but we fought the second one.

“I think it’s ridiculous, people should be able to travel twice to the same place without being charged. Darwen is also a very small place, there isn’t much to do for five hours.”

Parkingeye, the company that manages the car park, claimed the car had been parked there for five hours and said the fine would increase if not paid.