A business owner has criticised advice on avoiding loading bay fines as “unrealistic” after his ticket was cancelled.

Clark Maides, of M and B Meats, successfully appealed against two fines after his van was ticketed while parked in a loading bay in London Road in Brighton because it was unattended for about six minutes.

The letter cancelling his ticket included advice from Brighton and Hove City Council, saying that staff should not have a conversation during deliveries or go to the toilet.

The council introduced a “red route” in London Road in April, banning vehicles from stopping unless they were using specified bays.

The parking tickets were issued on two days in July and the council rejected the initial appeals from Mr Maides unless he provided more information.

One letter from the council said that it had reviewed six minutes and 36 seconds of footage during which a driver was seen returning to the van with “a small item” in his left hand.

The letter said: “You stated you were pushing heavy boxes from your fridge to the van. We would expect some activity to be seen within the observation time.”

The letter said that the bays were in high demand and asked for more evidence such as invoices and proof of delivery if Mr Maides wanted to take his appeal further.

Mr Maides’s appeal finally succeeded two months after the initial penalty was issued but the result came with advice.

Items for delivery should be prepared and “ready to go” because no time could be allowed to pack, unpack or select items. Loading or unloading should start as soon as the vehicle is parked.

Workers and delivery drivers should not carry out any activity that is not directly related to moving the items and “this includes stopping for a conversation or to visit the toilet”.

The vehicle must leave the bay as soon as loading or unloading is complete.

Items should be the size, weight or quantity not easily transported by one person in one trip.

Mr Maides said: “This is pretty ridiculous and nothing like the real world. If I have to collect an order that’s in a carrier bag – which can be the case with our business – where do I park for that?

“And you can’t have a conversation? It’s laughable really. Drivers that come into us have to have things signed and checked, etc.

“It’s just so unbelievably stupid. It shouldn’t be this stupid.”

Mr Maides’s fines were cancelled days after nearby Preston Road grocery shop Pamir received a loading bay fine because its driver had gone to the toilet.

Pamir’s owner Ishaq Karimi, 33, said that his delivery driver was “not a robot”.

The council’s cabinet member for transport, parking and the public realm, Trevor Muten, has previously said that if a vehicle was in a loading bay for an extended period of time and not seen to be unloading or loading then the business would receive a fine.

Councillor Muten also previously said: “Red routes are improving traffic flows, bus punctuality and air quality and reducing traffic congestion, making pedestrian and cycle access better and safer.

“We are determined to make red routes work well for everyone and, if necessary, will make further adaptions during the remainder of this six-month consultation to make this scheme a success.”

Business owners and residents affected by the red routes can submit feedback by emailing parkingprojects@brighton-hove.gov.uk before Monday 30 September.