Disabled People/Mother & Baby Parking

[bilsat]

I am fed up with the shops that give disabled people parking up front of their shops, our local Sainsburys have taken the first row and made it disabled only then the row opposite mother and baby parking, anyone else now has to use the rear spaces which are tight to get into due to the inconsiderate parking of these other people, just because they seen to have people carriers, can't they at least park inside only one space? Then they go and walk around the shop without any sign of a disability, if they need to park so close how can they walk so far around these shops?
There are genuine disabled people who need access for their wheelchairs, they seem to be able to park correctly and I have no problem with them but watching every week most in the disabled parking don't hang about and appear to be fit.....
When my wife had to use a wheelchair a few years ago after an operation we used these spaces to have room for the wheelchair and as we didn't have a disabled sticker were told several times that we couldn't park there so I got the wheelchair out and asked them how disabled did you need to be to use the spaces!!
End of rant.............

[patkins]

Bilsat, you might get a slating from some members on here over your rant above, but the point is that the majority of the wheelchair bound public who use these parking spaces do not want help or attention drawn to their disability, yet the supermarkets and public buildings go out of their way to highlight the disabled.The disabled,and quite rightly so, have fought for parity in all areas of life with their able fellows so there is an irony as to why they should accept to be treated differently when they go to shop or borrow a book from the library.

[Black sheep boy]

bilsat, I'm disabled with 2 false legs. I can walk perfectly well round the supermarket, and most people say they can't tell that I wear Prosthetic legs, but I do need to be able to open the car door fully to get in and out. Hence I have to park in a disabled bay for the extra width.

I suspect I would be one of those "people" that you see as "don't hang about and appear to be fit....."

You cant judge a book by the cover, as they say.

As far as the disabled bays being near the entrance, well there are people who can only walk, or be on there legs, for a short periods. they may be having a good day when they go shopping, who are you to decide?

Personally my problem is with people who park in disabled bays that don't have or need a badge........

[johnboy1974]

i think we should all be grateful that supermarkets help out disabled persons by making their lives a little bit easier by letting them park close to the main door. its of no hinderance at all to able bodied people. disabled poeple have an important part to play in society. my friend lost one of his arms when he was young, but he is now one of the top gaming programmers in the uk.

[Canker_Canison]

I understand the rant. I use disabled bays when I go shopping as I need to fully open my car door to get in & out. I'm not quick on my feet & can't cover great distances without a lot of pain in my feet.
But I don't have a badge yet. So if I can find a big enough normal space close to the store I'll use it.

It does wind me up when I see fit young people parking in disabled spots, jumping out of cars to go & buy their alcohol & saunter back without a care in the world. I'm not that bothered for myself, it's those people who really do have mobility problems that need those spaces.

As far as bad parking goes I've found the answer....

If there's a vehicle parked on the line between spaces I park next to it making sure I'm as close as possible. The general idea is to stop them getting to their drivers door. I don't cross the line, just copy their bad example of parking.
Had a few people have a go at me for doing it, but they soon shut up when I point out I'm just as close to the line as they are. If they had parked in the middle of the space they wouldn't have a problem. That & I'll never be described as a small person.

Did I ever mention I have a very evil, twisted mind?

[barrowmanandrew]

I am fed up with the shops that give disabled people parking up front of their shops, our local Sainsburys have taken the first row and made it disabled only then the row opposite mother and baby parking, anyone else now has to use the rear spaces which are tight to get into due to the inconsiderate parking of these other people, just because they seen to have people carriers, can't they at least park inside only one space? Then they go and walk around the shop without any sign of a disability, if they need to park so close how can they walk so far around these shops?
There are genuine disabled people who need access for their wheelchairs, they seem to be able to park correctly and I have no problem with them but watching every week most in the disabled parking don't hang about and appear to be fit.....
When my wife had to use a wheelchair a few years ago after an operation we used these spaces to have room for the wheelchair and as we didn't have a disabled sticker were told several times that we couldn't park there so I got the wheelchair out and asked them how disabled did you need to be to use the spaces!!
End of rant.............

in a perfect world , we shouldn't need disabled or child/parent spaces. when i go to supermarkets etc, i intentionally park near back of carpark, in order to let less able, infirm or elderly people take advantage of the closer spaces, as you said not everybody that needs close access has an orange sticker. i do park in parent/child spaces when i have my 4 year old. managing a wonky trolly and a hyperactive child in a busy carpark can be very dangerous. what gets my goat is when young fit adults park as close as they can. maybe if we all thought more carefully about our parking, then supermarkets etc would have no need to reserve these spaces....

[chroma]

NAILS+WELD = CALTROP

Useful for dropping at all the wheels on inconsiderate bastards who have either wrongly parked in a disabled space or taken up two or three bays.

Just grind off the heads of some nails and put a sharp pointy angle on them, bend them 90 degrees and weld in the middle, an hours work can make hundreds of these to slip in your pockets add some black spray paint for camoflage and the driver wont even see the bastards before reversing over and puncturing all four wheels.

That'll learn em!

[pantomime horse]

myself I am disabled but unless I'm having a bad day when then I really need to use a space up close
then I try not to use disabled spaces

as was already said
most disabled folk just want to be as able-bodied as they can be

cheers folks

[greengrass]

Why do people whinge about having to park an extra 50 yards away from the door and then proceed to walk a quarter of a milearound the flaming supermarket?

If it was up to me any selfish @rse that parks in a disabled spot without displaying a blue badge would be clamped and fined. One thing they get right in the USofA is that plod have jurisdiction to give you a ticket if you park in a blue bay without a badge - even off the road in (for instance) supermarket carparks.

But I also think that supermarkets etc. here should provide some wider parking bays further away from the entrance for all the Henriettas to park their Chelsea tractors that ought to only be for wider vehicles.

[berley]

I think later on in the evening you dont need so many mother and baby spaces, , so after around 20:00 these should be open for all to use as the little darlings should all be tucked up in bed at that time

[cloudnineuk54]

im disabled myself so im very gratefull for these bays,but some peeps are drivers for disabled people and do the shopping for them etc etc,its these people that i get annoyed with, if the actual disabled person is not present they should not use the disabled bays. i myself if im not going shopping with them then my parking badge stays with me

[dennyjames]

I also have a disability and do have a blue badge. If I am having a good day I will not use a disabled bay, even though I have the right to as there are people worse off than me so saving that space may help. If I have a bad day and cannot stay on my feet to long then I would use the space but to be honest if I am suffering that much I'll send the wife out instead.