Meeting with the GNR on Tuesday 18.08.09 10.00am
Amovate’s Committee have had an informal meeting with the officer in charge of the Aljezur and Odeceixe GNR stations to discuss issues raised by our members and on various Forums.
It is hoped that the officer, Sergeant Gabriel Reis, who lives on Vale da Telha close to the Pines roundabout, will contribute a regular article in Amovate’s Newsletter with regard to points of law etc, and also answer questions e-mailed to Amovate by members and residents.
Parking & Traffic
We first asked for clarification on the parking regulations around the Roque supermarket. He tells us that parking IS allowed directly outside the supermarket but nowhere else on the stretch of road between the two ‘freeway’ signs.
That includes all along the left hand side, from the Pines roundabout past the Fonte do Vales restaurant up to the freeway sign, and on the right side from the roundabout alongside Karisma, up to the first junction close by Roque’s.
Parking fines vary. The charge for clamping and subsequent removal of the clamp is €30 plus a fine of between €10 and €30 depending on the location.
The only exception is if you park in a disabled bay, when the usual €30 applies to remove the clamp but this offence carries a €60 fine.
You can also be clamped for parking badly on any road in a way which might cause an obstruction. For this, you’ll be charged €30 to remove the clamp and fined €30 on top of that.
Other charges are incurred if the vehicle is towed away to be impounded but Sergeant Reis and the Camara official with him were surprised at the figure of €300 we had heard was levied on one resident. They said it would never be that much.
The GNR do have an input to the Camara about traffic signs and their positions on the roads, and he said he will ask about more visible signs perhaps being provided.
There was also a suggestion that more permanent ‘sleeping policemen’ or speed bumps be laid at some of the blackspots, with raised pedestrian crossings of the kind that slows the traffic so effectively though Marmalete.
Incidentally the speed limit everywhere in Vale da Telha is 50kph.
Road Safety
As for the ‘triangle’, or Y-junction close to the tennis courts, we told him just about everyone was confused about who had right-of-way on what is a pretty dangerous and intimidating junction.
Hopefully it won’t be there for too long because there are plans to replace it with a roundabout, and another at the Old Schoolhouse, Amovate’s HQ.
Sergeant Reis explained that in Portugal if there is no ‘Stop’ or ‘Give Way’ sign then priority is always given to traffic coming from your right. But there IS a ‘Stop’ sign at the triangle for traffic coming from the direction of the stables roundabout, so you must stop there and give way to traffic coming from the left (from the direction of Monte Clerigo) and from the right (from the direction of the Pines roundabout).
If you are coming from the direction of the Pines roundabout and want to bear left at the triangle then you must stop and give way to traffic coming from your right.
Documents
People are concerned about having to carry their Passport in the car for fear of it being lost or stolen. Sergeant Reis says that if you are driving in the Aljezur and Odeceixe areas (in other words, HIS territory) it is acceptable to just carry a photocopy of your passport along with your driving licence, insurance and car registration documents. Anywhere else he recommends you carry it with you, although the photocopy might be acceptable. In most cases, anyway, they—like the UK police—will arrange for you to report to your local police station to show the original passport at a later date.
Excessive Noise
There have been complaints of excessive noise by builders at unsociable hours. The laws say that building work can only be carried out on weekdays between 7am-9pm, and on Saturdays they think it is 8am-12noon or 1pm. Sundays are a no-no!
There are also many concerns about neighbours’ dogs barking through the night. According to Portuguese law the barking of a dog is designated as neighbourhood noise (ruido de vizinhança) and it is forbidden for dogs or any animals to make such noise between 11pm and 7am. This is a simple contravention punished by law with a fine, applicable only by the Camara (Regulamento Geral do Ruido).
The police may order the owner of the animal to stop the noise between 11pm and 7 am and they may also fix a period of time for the owner to comply with that order.
Burglaries & Home Safety
Burglaries are another concern at this time of the year. Sergeant Reis said they have one suspect in custody for a recent offence and he says one particular ‘scam’ involves someone damaging shutters or doors, then coming back a few days later selling alarms and security systems. But as he does so he is effectively ‘casing the joint’, for want of a better phrase, ready to return later to break into the property. Incidentally, if you do catch a burglar in your house the laws are similar to the UK—only ‘reasonable force’ can be used to subdue or detain him!
Sergeant Reis was at pains to point out that as this is an area with many holiday homes it is vitally important that people let the GNR know when their house or apartment is going to be empty. He says he cannot stress this enough; that owners let them know when they are away from home.
You should visit the GNR station near the church square, give them your name and the address of the property concerned, together with a contact number (phone or e-mail), a local key holder if there is one, and the length of time, with dates, the property is vacant. You should also supply the names of any contractors who need to have access to the property, such as pool or garden maintenance. You don’t want your pool man or window cleaner to be nicked, do you?
Amovate will provide a form that you can download, print out, fill in and take to the GNR so they are aware of your situation. Once the GNR are in possession of those details Sergeant Reis will arrange for a patrol to drive by the premises on a regular basis, as a deterrent.
He says this protocol is an absolute priority to reduce the risk of burglaries and really does want everyone concerned to sign up to it.
Incidentally, there has been a suggestion that a Neighbourhood Watch scheme be instituted, but under Portuguese law this could be constituted as illegal because ANY form of private security is against the law.
It could be done on an Informal basis, with people agreeing amongst themselves to keep an eye on a neighbour’s property. But a formal organization on these lines could be deemed illegal under Portuguese law. Apparently there is a fear it could evolve into vigilantes or even a private security force.
As we said earlier, we hope to have a regular contribution from Sergeant Reis in our bi-monthly Newsletter which is delivered to every postbox in Vale da Telha and the immediate areas around it. If any member has any questions, we’ll put them to him….