Just out of curiosity, don’t double yellow lines mean you can’t park there? Every time I cross Smith Cove, there is a line of cars parked along the double yellow lines and I have yet to see a police car attempting to move any of them or issue tickets for illegal parking. Maybe I’m mistaken and the double yellow lines are for decoration only …just wondered.


Auntie’s answer: You are not the only person who has queried what the rules are for parking by double yellow lines. I’m sure this won’t surprise you to know this situation has come up before in different locations.

But since there clearly are drivers out there who think those yellow lines do not apply to them or they simply don’t care, I will try to say this as simply and straightforwardly as I can, and use words of few syllables, just in case. If anyone needs to, feel free to read the following sentence slowly. Here goes: Anyone who parks by a double yellow line commits an offence.

Section 108 of The Traffic Law, 2011 sets out all the rules concerning parking by yellow lines, including a 15-minute limit for goods vehicles unloading and loading (unless a sign prohibits that).

You can find more details about this, including explanations about this rule by a representative of the RCIPS Traffic Management Unit, in a previous column (see Parking by double yellow lines).

I hope that answers the whole double-yellow line question once and for all.

The law mentioned in this column can be found on the CNS Library