Transport for London (19 008 096)
Category : Transport and highways > Street furniture and lighting
Decision : Closed after initial enquiries
Decision date : 21 Oct 2019
The Ombudsman's final decision:
Summary: The Ombudsman will not investigate this complaint about the position of a road sign at a loading bay on a Red Route. He is unlikely to find fault by Transport for London has caused the complainant significant injustice.
The complaint
- The complainant, who I refer to here as Mr C, has complained Transport for London (TfL) will not move a sign next to a loading bay outside his home.
The Ombudsman’s role and powers
- We investigate complaints about ‘maladministration’ and ‘service failure’. In this statement, I have used the word ‘fault’ to refer to these. We must also consider whether any fault has had an adverse impact on the person making the complaint. I refer to this as ‘injustice’.
- We provide a free service but must use public money carefully. We may decide not to start an investigation if, for example, we believe:
- it is unlikely we would find fault; or
- the fault has not caused injustice to the person who complained;
- any injustice is not significant enough to justify our involvement. (Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(6), as amended)
How I considered this complaint
- I have considered what Mr C said in his complaint and background information provided by TfL. Mr C commented on a draft before I made this decision.
What I found
- Mr C lives on a road that is a ‘Red Route’ where parking and stopping is generally prohibited. Outside his home is a marked bay where loading and unloading is permitted for a maximum of 20 minutes.
- Mr C says the position of a sign in the loading bay means drivers cannot open doors on the pavement side of a vehicle. He says this causes safety issues for himself and other users of the bay. He also says it prevents drivers unloading or loading goods.
- TfL has considered Mr C’s concerns but sees no reason to move the sign.
Final decision
- I have decided we will not investigate this complaint because we are unlikely to find fault in how TfL has considered the matter. Further, if there were any fault, it has not caused Mr C injustice that would warrant our involvement.
Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman