To find this odd ? Disabled parking spaces.

[itsgettingwierd]

So today ds and I travelled to a sporting event for para sport somewhere we've not been before.

We knew there were lots of public car parks.

So we arrive, park, and I do to the machine to buy a ticket for 4-6 hours.

Note: car park is 24 hours and all ticket options available.

At the machine it says blue badge holders get 3 hours free. Fab I think and ask the attendant if I have to come back after the 3 hours to pay for the remaining time or how does it work.

Nope - I'm allowed 3 hours in the car park only. That's it.

It seemed really odd to me. My county allows 3 hours only if you park on double yellows which I've never done but all car parks you've paid as everyone does and can have as long as you need. At sports centres we've never been limited to time and it's been free like it's free to everyone.

The attendants reasoning was "to make it fair". But I don't get that. How's it's fair if you're disabled you can only stay somewhere for 3 hours but if you're able bodied you can stay all day?

I'd be happy to pay as don't think disability is a reason to need free parking - but it is a reason to need accessible parking so you can actually get out of the car!

That is a terrible, terrible policy and I doubt it is legal as it does not give disabled people the same ability as able-bodies to attend the whole event if it is longer than 3 hours.

I would write to them.

It only works if blue badge holder isn’t the driver and someone can get in and out of normal space and get you in the car in middle of carpark. If you are driver then you are stuffed. Screams of someone going “those disabled people get loads free stuff we let them have 3 h but no more”

If you are happy to pay the extra or pay for all of it should be provision for you to do so

@knittingaddict

How stupid are you?

Very obviously, but there's no need to be so rude. I'm tried and wasn't thinking. OK?

I’m sorry, that was harsh. Frustrated Knee jerk reaction.

I'm surprised at the number of posters who are making suggestions of how OP might compromise in some way that either affects her or her son.

In short, it's a shit policy and discriminatory. I'd defo raise with the council as well as the event organisers.

And 'can't you just pay for the extra time or move to a normal space' is this threads 'cancel the cheque'!

@BlusteringBoobies

I'm surprised at the number of posters who are making suggestions of how OP might compromise in some way that either affects her or her son.

In short, it's a shit policy and discriminatory. I'd defo raise with the council as well as the event organisers.

And 'can't you just pay for the extra time or move to a normal space' is this threads 'cancel the cheque'!

Agree. Fucking despairing about the amount of people that can either not read or can not comprehend what it means to need a disabled space. My ds is ...wait for it...a disabled DRIVER!...she needs wider spaces to get out of her car. How pray would she cope in this situation, she could not park in a 'normal' space and would be disallowed from parking in a disabled space. Shame on you if you can not see the problem

This is pure discrimination, and there is a lot of discriminatory thinking on this thread in response.

Disabled people should have equal access to facilities as able bodied people, and equal rights to use facilities as able bodied people.

If there aren't enough disabled spaces to enable disabled people to stay in the carpark for as long as everyone else who doesn't need disabled spaces, then they need to provide more disabled parking spaces.

People saying that can't the OP just move her car and then move it back (and hope there's a disabled space when she comes back!) or 'oh well it's probably to make it fairer for other disabled people' are missing the point entirely.

Disabled people and their carers shouldn't have to work harder to access what everyone else is able to access without even thinking about it. Disabled people and their carers have to do so much invisible work in order to just move around freely in public spaces, and most able bodied people don't realise this and don't care. Lack of provision for disabled people across all areas of society is shocking. The fact that in 2021 it's still totally acceptable for venues to not have parking, ramps, lifts, accessible toilets, etc, and that so many people don't care about this or see it as the major issue it is, says something deeply troubling about our society.

I'm so sorry about this experience, OP. It must be so exhausting constantly having to fight against this sort of thing. Write to the council and kick up a fuss. In fact, name the council please and I'll write too.

The answer should be more disabled parking spaces. Or maybe more disabled drop off spaces for people to then park up in a regular spot, if there isn't enough room for more disabled spaces. My mum needs dropped off in a normal spot but then I can move the car to a regular space to park. I do appreciate that this isn't suitable for everyone though and everyone's disabilities are different. In any case, I'd write to the establishment.

That's appalling.

@2020isnotbehaving

It only works if blue badge holder isn’t the driver and someone can get in and out of normal space and get you in the car in middle of carpark. If you are driver then you are stuffed. Screams of someone going “those disabled people get loads free stuff we let them have 3 h but no more”

If you are happy to pay the extra or pay for all of it should be provision for you to do so

True.

Ds still waiting for his drivers license 10 months after applying. Another thing that's more difficult.

If if he'd driven himself he'd have been stuffed!

And the event organisers have said they will look into it and if a solution can't be agreed with the centre it's unlikely they'd use it again.

Not too committed but this was a verbal discussion during a busy event which I'll follow up in writing!

Awful OP, very poorly thought through.

@EnidSpyton

This is pure discrimination, and there is a lot of discriminatory thinking on this thread in response.

Disabled people should have equal access to facilities as able bodied people, and equal rights to use facilities as able bodied people.

If there aren't enough disabled spaces to enable disabled people to stay in the carpark for as long as everyone else who doesn't need disabled spaces, then they need to provide more disabled parking spaces.

People saying that can't the OP just move her car and then move it back (and hope there's a disabled space when she comes back!) or 'oh well it's probably to make it fairer for other disabled people' are missing the point entirely.

Disabled people and their carers shouldn't have to work harder to access what everyone else is able to access without even thinking about it. Disabled people and their carers have to do so much invisible work in order to just move around freely in public spaces, and most able bodied people don't realise this and don't care. Lack of provision for disabled people across all areas of society is shocking. The fact that in 2021 it's still totally acceptable for venues to not have parking, ramps, lifts, accessible toilets, etc, and that so many people don't care about this or see it as the major issue it is, says something deeply troubling about our society.

I'm so sorry about this experience, OP. It must be so exhausting constantly having to fight against this sort of thing. Write to the council and kick up a fuss. In fact, name the council please and I'll write too.

Said better than I can.

Thanks

My daughter is disabled OP and she needs a lot of space at the side so I can get her electric wheelchair up to her door.

I totally feel your pain and agree that anybody who can't see it just doesn't get the day to day issues you face.

It's absolutely outrageous that you are expected to cut your visit to 3 hours - which would have to include getting from car park to venue and return in that 3 hours too.

You should write to them and talk about disability discrimination and explain to them that they are on extremely dodgy ground.

I had this sort of issue with a well known football club. I tried to buy a season ticket for a disabled client and they were making me jump through hoops becuase of the accessibilty needs - I pointed out that an able bodied person would have already got their season ticket by now and my disabled client had already missed 2 matches - this sounded suspiciously like disability discrimination to me - a day later he had his ticket.

Makes me so mad! I actually wish there was a way of doing blue badges into two catagories - one for space and one for needing to be close to the shops/venue - I will walk as long as you want through the car park with my daughter but we NEED the space at the side to get her in and out! :(

Makes me so mad! I actually wish there was a way of doing blue badges into two catagories - one for space and one for needing to be close to the shops/venue - I will walk as long as you want through the car park with my daughter but we NEED the space at the side to get her in and out! :(

That's actually a really good idea.

And for those of us who need space and have that badge a simple being allowed to park in the middle of 2 spaces would suffice. And all those abled bodied people on this thread out there who just think we should park in a normal space and pay won't mind that it may impact their ability to park of disabled people take up 2 spaces. They'll happily accept that they need to make that compromise to their day out to share.

They've made it clear they think so

Wouldn't matter the distance as you said.

I love all the posters saying park in the normal bays! So helpful

I think it's outrageous OP & you should definitely contact them.

There clearly aren't enough spaces for disabled blue badge holders. But if you have too many you end up with, as I had last week, a full station car park - no space at all (so I couldn't park) but a whole long row of empty disabled spaces. And they regularly stay empty.

So it has to be a balance - or better managed - so that there are always spaces for those who need them. (And I had a badge for my mother for ten years so I know a bit about it).
I'm sorry it was so difficult for you.

@KikoLemons

There clearly aren't enough spaces for disabled blue badge holders. But if you have too many you end up with, as I had last week, a full station car park - no space at all (so I couldn't park) but a whole long row of empty disabled spaces. And they regularly stay empty.

So it has to be a balance - or better managed - so that there are always spaces for those who need them. (And I had a badge for my mother for ten years so I know a bit about it).
I'm sorry it was so difficult for you.

Complaining about empty disabled parking and suggesting that these spaces should be taken away so that you as an able bodied person have more choices of where to park is completely ableist thinking. You don't have a right to a parking space. None of us do. But a disabled person does have a right to equal access and disabled parking should be a key part of that (it currently isn't, though, legally).

If those spaces weren't there, then no one who was disabled would be able to access the train station. They already have to preplan and prebook their journeys, put up with delays and reroutes around stations with shit access, wait for everyone else to get off a train before they can, etc. The one thing that makes a disabled person's life easier is knowing that they can at least get parked when they go somewhere. So having plenty of disabled parking alleviates some of the stress and hassle they experience on a day to day basis. Stress and hassle that you never have to deal with. You can go and find another parking space somewhere and walk if a car park is full - many disabled people don't have that choice. For some disabled people, if there's no disabled parking available, that means they can't get out of their vehicle and will just have to go home again.

Nowhere in this country has too many disabled parking spaces. In fact, in every part of the country, there are too few to guarantee parking for everyone who might need it. This is because, shockingly, there is no legal requirement for local authorities or commercial enterprises to even provide blue badge spaces. I've got a friend who is mobility impaired and has frequently had to give up and go home when going out because she couldn't find anywhere to park her accessible vehicle. Please don't advocate for disabled spaces to be removed. It's really not something we should be aiming for when we offer so little provision as it is.

I often had to give up and go home, hospitals, shops, supermarkets , social places. Or get there hours and hours before hand. I don’t know many able bodied people who routinely go out and not expect to be able to park in a complex that has its own carpark not unless was Xmas Eve or major football match near by.

Had someone point out to me tonight when I couldn’t access a pub that maybe they just needed to know a disabled person wanted to come in and then they would get one … I tried explaining the disability act was 26years old how long was I supposed to wait but she seemed think it would happen v soon. People don’t even see the inequality no chance hell fixing it in my life time

@KikoLemons

There clearly aren't enough spaces for disabled blue badge holders. But if you have too many you end up with, as I had last week, a full station car park - no space at all (so I couldn't park) but a whole long row of empty disabled spaces. And they regularly stay empty.

So it has to be a balance - or better managed - so that there are always spaces for those who need them. (And I had a badge for my mother for ten years so I know a bit about it).
I'm sorry it was so difficult for you.

Each car park had 5 BB spaces. (Capacity was 100).

Each car park had 2 empty BB spaces both times I parked. (The Tetris was because we didn't want to risk losing them although it seemed unlikely).

In this case it didn't seem like they needed more spaces. The issue was they wouldn't allow disabled people to use the car park for more than 3 hours.

kikolemons where do you live? Nowhere, absolutely nowhere, I've been lately have there been empty disabled spaces for any length of time.

I go to a particular shopping centre and get there for opening time because I dont like it when its too busy. The blue badge spaces are always completely full by the time I return to my car.

So much ignorance on this thread it is shocking. How can people really think that moving to a regular space is an option?

And ignorance running rife in the company that runs this car park it seems . I'd be mounting a social media campaign if it were me OP, I'm seething on your behalf.

The problem here is that even if this policy were discriminatory (and that might have to be resolved by a court*) you are still left with the costly (in terms of time and money) business of acting against the operators (and despite this being a council facility, it could still be managed by a 3rd party). Good luck with that.

"Rights" are all very well until you suddenly discover you can't enforce them.

*Some car parks ignore blue badges for accessible parking and insist on the vehicle being in the appropriate tax band. Is that discriminatory ?

@RockingMyFiftiesNot

So much ignorance on this thread it is shocking. How can people really think that moving to a regular space is an option?

And ignorance running rife in the company that runs this car park it seems . I'd be mounting a social media campaign if it were me OP, I'm seething on your behalf.

Ignorance is the best word.

I bet if any able bodied people turned up to an event that lasted 4-5 hours at a facility and were told they could only park for 3 hours, leave the event and move car elsewhere "to be fair to everyone" they'd be up in arms. Even if the space was free of charge.

Even more so if there were plenty of BB spaces (some even empty ) that could be paid for for the entire event or as long as wanted.

I'm actually more shocked (than I probably should be based on experience) that people think it's fair play for disabled people to be limited to use of a car park and able bodied people not to have the same limitations.

The problem here is that even if this policy were discriminatory (and that might have to be resolved by a court)

I have absolutely no doubt that it is discriminatory, and contravenes the Equalities act. I can't imagine a court taking very long to decide that.

@RockingMyFiftiesNot

The problem here is that even if this policy were discriminatory (and that might have to be resolved by a court)

I have absolutely no doubt that it is discriminatory, and contravenes the Equalities act. I can't imagine a court taking very long to decide that.

in which case you are more than free to do so.

But until someone does, they can carry on as they are.

LIke I said, "rights" are all very well until you have to pay to enforce them. Then they become mere privileges for the wealthy.