A CABBIE has slammed a “ridiculous” car park after the taxi sign on the top of his car was smashed off by a concrete beam as he drove underneath it.

Gavin Castle got in to the two-storey car park at the back of Brighton Station easily – but getting out proved problematic.

The 48-year-old said: “One smashed roof sign, one wire ripped out and I can’t work (without it) because of regulations. It’s ridiculous.”

He drove into the car park under a sign which said it had a maximum height of 2.05 metres.

When he went to leave he followed a one-way system marked on the floor and made his way towards the exit.

But his car was damaged as he drove beneath an unmarked support just in front of the way out.

Mr Castle, who lives in Patcham, Brighton, said: “The entrance to the car park at Brighton Station has a maximum height of 2.05 metres.

“You drive in and signs clearly say one way so you have to drive all the way around.

“You would think the height would stay at 2.05 metres because that’s what you need to be (less than) to get in the car park.”

There are several height-restricted spaces in the car park for smaller cars and these are clearly marked.

But he said there was nothing to indicate the exit was lower than the entrance.

He sent The Argus a video of him walking the exit route to show how the incident had happened.

Walking up to the exit he said: “If you’re in the car park and you choose not to go into the restricted height spaces you’re fine.

“The exit is there and up there (he gestures towards a beam you have to drive underneath to get to the exit).

“There are absolutely no height restrictions so you have to assume you are back to 2.05 metres, that’s what it should be.”

But he then points the camera at another concrete beam.

He said: “This is where I smashed my roof sign on my taxi and ripped out the wires because I couldn’t get through.

“And yet, it let me in the car park.”

Because the car park has a pay-on-entry policy and upholds this using automatic number plate recognition (ANPR) he drove his taxi all the way back to the entrance and around the outside of the car park to the exit.

There, he reversed into the exit to pay for his ticket.

He said: “I was told I might get a ticket because of the ANPR so I had to drive back out then reverse into the exit so the cameras could check me.”

The car park is operated by parking provider Saba on behalf of Govia Thameslink Railway (GTR).

GTR’s commercial director David Gornall suggested Mr Castle had misunderstood the height sign at the entrance.

He said: “The height restriction is clearly signed at the entrance and applies to the lowest point in the whole car park, which this driver’s vehicle exceeds.

“Our parking contractor has discussed this issue with the driver and emphasised that car park users are responsible for paying attention to signs such as height restriction warnings.”

Saba was asked for a comment but referred The Argus to GTR.