‘Massively abused’: Sydney motorist’s parking dispute sparks furious debate

There is no debating the difficulty of finding a parking spot in Sydney, but when one does appear, the motorist’s right to claim it is often up for discussion.

One frustrated driver divided the internet when he took to Reddit with a diagram of a side street standoff, which turned nasty.

The spaces are occupied on the left-hand side of the road, but a yellow car is just about to pull out, the diagram shows.

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A blue car driving in the opposite direction has stopped and has its indicator on, but would need to perform a U-turn over a broken line to pull into the space.

As the blue car waits for its chance, a white car - the frustrated motorist’s vehicle - approaches on the same side as the parking space.

“Just got massively abused by the driver of the blue car in this situation,” the driver of the white car said.

“It’s a pretty quiet street in Sydney but super hard to get a park.”

“I’m the white car, approaching the yellow car who is leaving its spot. But the blue car was there before me and claiming the spot from the wrong side.”

Legally in NSW, neither car has a specific claim to the parking space, but the blue car cannot legally perform the U-turn needed to take it while the white car is in the way.

“A driver must not begin a U-turn unless - (a) the driver has a clear view of any approaching traffic, and (b) the driver can safely make the U-turn without unreasonably obstructing the free movement of traffic,” NSW Road Rules state.

Many netizens backed the regulations, agreeing that the blue car had claim to the spot only in the absence of other traffic.

“If you are driving and you see a spot across the road, and you can turn around without impinging (on) other vehicles to get it, then good for you. But that spot is absolutely fair game to anyone coming the other direction,” one person said.

“The blue car must perform a legal U-turn to cross the lane and so must give way to the white car. That does not mean the white car has ‘right of way’. Both parties must avoid a collision at all costs,” another said.

“If the blue car wanted that spot he should’ve been on the correct side of the road first,” another said.

Calls for courtesy

The Sydney driver pointed out that not everyone believed he was deserving of the park, even if the blue car couldn’t legally assert his claim over it.

“Other posters here though are saying I still need to leave the park for blue out of courtesy,” the driver said.

“The person in the white car could be courteous and move on to allow the blue car to park in that space or take the space,” one person said.

“If I was (the) white (car) and saw the other car waiting already then I’d just let them have the spot (even though legally I have claim to it) because I’m not a d***,” another said.

“If I was you, I would have given up the spot if blue car was obviously waiting, but also if I’m the blue car I’d assume that drivers on the other side of the road have priority over me. You’re both the a*******,” another said.