Misuse of parking bays for people with disabilities

Illegal parking in disabled parking bays is becoming problematic as people who do not need wheelchairs are using the designated wheelchair parking bays.

Most people abuse these parking facilities as they are close to the entrance of a building or shopping centre.

According to Overstrand Municipality’s Traffic Chief, Rudi Fraser, wheelchair dependent people need space (width) to be able to open the door wide to allow wheelchairs next to the car without hindering access.

“Far too often these disabled parking bays are used by people who have light-duty mobility impairment, people who are frail and people who feel that any impairment allows them to park in these facilities. But even people with other physical problems should not use these bays – they should park somewhere else because wheelchair-bound people can only park where there is space for the wheelchair,” he said.

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