Emily Brown
A Birmingham resident went out of their way to save a parking space by chaining their wheelie bin to the road.
Most drivers will know the frustration of not being able to find a parking space, but public parking is public for a reason, and should really be reserved for motor vehicles – not a bin with wheels.
This particular wheelie bin owner evidently doesn't agree, however, as they went to the extreme length of padlocking their bin to the road in Handsworth, Birmingham, to prevent unwanted cars from taking up the space.
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The unusual scene was spotted and shared online by driver Suhad Miah last week when he was searching the streets for a parking space ahead of a friend's wedding. He found the near-empty spot outside his friend's home and attempted to move the bin, only to realise it had been secured with padlock and a chain that had been drilled into the ground.
Speaking to The Sun about his ordeal, Miah described the road as a "nightmare", saying: "That road is really bad for parking, you can't even drive down it... It is a congested area – but this was something different.
"I tried moving the bin, I just thought, okay, someone has put it in the middle of the road, but it pulled my arm back. I thought 'What's happening here?' I flipped the bin at an angle and I see it's been bolted to the ground. I just thought 'Oh my days'."
The discovery of the wheelie bin sparked fury among the street's neighbours, with Miah explaining that his friend who lived opposite the space had been having a 'nightmare' with their wedding, saying: "Getting a limousine outside the house has been really difficult too. I posted about the bin for a laugh thinking, I've seen it all now."
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Miah shared images of the wheelie bin on Facebook, where it received mixed responses from social media users, with some arguing that "no one owns the road", while others said they "don’t blame" the person responsible for the obstruction.
Ewell Thomas, who lives on the street, said they "don't think it's right to chain the bins to the road", noting that if they can't find a space they just park on another road.
In response to the situation, a spokesperson from Birmingham City Council said: "We would ask people to park considerately and respect all road users, and using a wheelie bin to reserve a space on the highway could be deemed an obstruction of the highway."