“Mind yer car, mister?”

Parking your car within easy walking distance of Goodison Park used to be a breeze. The area was strewn with odd patches of wasteland that had been laid bare by the Luftwaffe. Redevelopment got going in the 1960s and freed up even more gaps for parking between those houses still standing.

Before you had a chance to open the car door, however, a cheeky chappie would be welcoming you with, “Mind yer car, mister?” We complied, of course, part reward for entrepreneurial enterprise, part concern for the vehicle on our return.

We were under no illusions as to how the youngsters spent the intervening couple of hours. Standing on sentry duty, they were not.

We preferred to regard it as innocent opportunism rather than blatant begging or an informal protection racket. If our minder was there when we got back, we handed over a silver coin and he moved on to another customer/sucker.

Fast forward a few decades and parking the car has become more of an issue generally - and for obvious reasons. Recently, one of our local railway stations has become a cause for concern.

Improvements to the service between Nottingham, Newark and Lincoln have apparently led to an increase in the number of passengers travelling to Lowdham and Fiskerton stations by car. The Nottingham Evening News drew attention to it on Monday 27/2/17, under the headline, “Station with no car park brings village headache.” Some local people were complaining that commuters are clogging up nearby streets with their cars and causing inconvenience for residents and small business owners. The problem is apparently that Lowdham has no official station car parking spaces, nor are there any public car parks anywhere nearby.  

Maybe the residents are missing a trick. They could take a leaf out of the book of the enterprising house holders that I noticed on my way to the Ricoh Arena in Coventry and to Twickenham stadium, who were charging visitors for parking on their driveways. They could take it a step further by setting up fast food breakfast bars selling coffee and bacon baps from their front gardens.

If someone parks a little too close to the front of the property for comfort, try “Could I possibly look after your car for you while you are away today, sir/madam?” There’s probably a few bob to be made.

The old gates and signal box at Fiskerton Junction have been decommissioned as part of the upgrade that has contributed to the alleged parking problems near Lowdham station. This signal box formerly controlled the spur to the Southwell line, long since removed. The level crossing here was unusual in that it was operated by turning a large wheel in the signal box.