The dramatic increase of fines for the misuse of mobility car parks may not have been considered front page news, but it has demanded significant space within our daily newspapers.

On Saturday, 28th June, NZ Herald asked its readers to participate in a poll. The poll asked “Do you think the $150.00 Fine –increased from $40 – for wrongly parking in disabled car parks is appropriate?”
2656 people responded. 12% said the increase was too high. 39% thought it was too low, and 49% said it was about right.

On Friday 27th The NZ Herald quoted the Disability Mobility Action Parking Scheme Manager, Peter Wilson, who hoped “the fine will change the behaviour of some people who are misusing the parks.”

On Friday 20th Wellington’s Dominion Post said the increase was necessary to “curb a national epidemic of able-bodied people pinching car parks reserved for the disabled.” The newspaper backed up its statement by reporting that the Wellington City Council issued 1366 fines, totalling $54,280, since it started towing offenders from the city’s 30 mobility car parks, last year.

However some are not entirely happy as Cantabrian CP member Allison Franklin, quite rightly, points out

“I'm all in favour of the fine increases, it's just a shame they don't also apply to shopping malls and other off-road areas, which are private property.” she said.

Auckland based mobility card holder Stacey Roche has experienced the frustrations all disabled drivers go through when mobility parks are misused.

The most common excuse from the able bodied driver is that they are only going to be five minutes.

“That five minutes that your parked there is the five minutes that I will have to drive past, see that it’s unavailable and go elsewhere, this ruins my whole day,” responds Stacey.

Stacey has some doubts about the level of the increase and the policing of the parking spaces.

“The recent increase for misuse of the mobility parks is a step in the right direction, I actually think it should be more but this is progress. What needs to happen now is parking wardens actually being there when those “five minuters” are abusing these car parks; this will hopefully soon stop this attitude,” she said.

Perhaps the most encouraging sign, that attitudes are changing, was a NZ Herald cartoon implying that Labour Party people were legitimate candidates for mobility car parks, as they were profoundly disabled, because they were associated with Winston Peters. When cartoonists consider a disability issue significant enough to be the topic of the day, we are really making progress.

Over the next six months or so keep an eye out for mobility car park space abuse.

Has the fine increase made a difference?

Please let us know.

FootNote
Just as an aside let’s end with another excellent quote from the very astute Allison Franklin when she was reflecting on car park space abuse.

“The best example of abuse I saw was a courier van parked in one. Hmmm...a mobility-impaired courier? That's really embracing equal opportunity!!” she said.

Ross Flood- Editor
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Papatoetoe
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Phone/Fax (including answer phone) (09) 278-7106
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