Money Moral Dilemma: Would you park free if it blocked wheelchair access?

Magic-Ian

mayb wrote: »

Normally I would say that I would leave the space but I think I might check first to see if this was a blue badge holder's car. Parking is usually made available for blue badge holders too, so it would be a bit of a problem if they then want two parking spaces in another area as I cannot park in their blue badge spaces. Perhaps I am just having a bad day!!

Problem is that a lot of the time the disabled bays are full of able bodied persons vehicles.

higginsb

BigSky wrote: »

Absolutely NOT! Only the most ignorant lazy !!!!!! would do that.

I’d park in a “family” parking bay though even if I was on my own. Why should people that decide to bring their screaming, fat, badly-behaved kids round the supermarket get special parking bays?

The reason families have designated parking spaces in supermarkets is not so the parents don't have to walk far, it is so that they can open their car doors enough to strap babies and toddlers into their car seats. Have you ever tried to do this when the car beside you has parked 6 inches away from your rear door? It is impossible!

Metaphysio

I would if i was going to be under an hour, Most NCP car parks provide disabled parking and make all the allowances for the space required at the back. To park on the road and take up 2 spaces is quite selfish, and risky on their part.

To be honest I probably wouldn't even see the sticker anyway and if I had being driving round for 15 mins looking for a space. I would be to stressed to care what was on the bumper of the car in front.

Simple solution is for NCP to stop ripping people off for parking!

Magic-Ian

Bionic wrote: »

Well said Ian,
Our local supermarket has a Royal Mail box right by the store entrance and its roughly 4-5 feet from the disabled bays - so you won't be surprised to hear that frequently someone (A-B) parks and jumps out to 'post a letter' and then disappears into the store to do their shopping....... By the way I refuse to park on parent and toddler bays out of an assumption that respect should be the first consideration.
In the supermarket on the other direction (wrong way for most journeys) the disabled bays are usually available to BB's - guess where they are? ....... away from the entrance! :j

You don't live in Aylesbury do you? That sounds just like two stores here. It's funny that the only one that it is difficult to find a space is at the one where the BB bays are at the entrance.

chriswatts

Metaphysio wrote: »

I would if i was going to be under an hour, Most NCP car parks provide disabled parking and make all the allowances for the space required at the back. To park on the road and take up 2 spaces is quite selfish, and risky on there part.

To be honest i probably wouldnt even see the sticker anyway and if i had being driving round for 15 mins looking for a space i would be to stressed to care what was on the bumper of the car in front.

Simple solution is for NCP to stop ripping people off for parking!

Thinking about it further it's rather selfish to other disabled drivers who don't need so much space, I've often seen these vehicles parked at the front of disabled bays when they could easily be parked at the rear just before a double yellow. You'd think someone would have designed something like a hydraulic lift or lowering floor like on a razor back van that wouldn't need as much space!

Also I must admit your right when parking in a normal parking bay I never pay attention to car stickers, I'd notice if the parking bay in front was disabled but like I said before these are usually in blocks where it's not possible to park in them by accident. Although most of the forum would say they wouldn't, but on a designated parking bay and not just the side of the street I bet most people wouldn't notice neither and expect the disabled person to be parking in a disabled bay!

snugglepet20

No way. I find it so annoying when theres no mum and baby spaces at the supermarket because some jerk in a two seat sports car is there :mad: never mind if I physically couldn't use another space.

dustypixie

Ooo there's nothing like a moral dilemma to cause a big discussion and argument! Like the majority (I'm happy to say!) I wouldn't park there. Even if it happened that the driver was not the wheelchair user, and that he was alone on this occasion, I think it better to err on the side of caution. Everyone's busy these days, and there's more important things in life than saving a fiver. Haha, don't get me wrong- I'm a moneysaver too, but I'll do it sticking to my morals

Bionic

Magic-Ian wrote: »

You don't live in Aylesbury do you? That sounds just like two stores here. It's funny that the only one that it is difficult to find a space is at the one where the BB bays are at the entrance.

No but funnily enough I'm there quite often - my location is nearer Chelmsford. Obviously human behaviour is the same wherever you park.....;)

englishmac

In response to the dilemma, there is nothing to suggest that the space is a disabled bay. I would prefer not to park behind the car displaying the request. I might though. If I was expecting to be just a few minutes I would consider it. It is all well and good saying why should the disabled person have to wait for me to return but I may also have a genuine need; I may be collecting a badly needed prescription for someone for example. Disability parking may be busy at peak times and I understand the issue of able-bodied people taking disabled spaces. I think disabled parking bays should be policed. But by parking in a standard parking place, they have left themselves open to the consideration of others. It can be a bit galling at slack times when there are loads of disabled bays free, you know they will remain free during the time you are there (short of the sudden – unlikely - arrival of a convention) and you can’t use them.

On the subject of parent/child and pregnant women spaces, I think this is a different issue. Having children is a choice; disability is not. I don’t disagree with providing facilities for your customer base. I don’t think it is fair that parents with/about to have young children should be given larger spaces (thereby reducing the number of spaces available to all) AND also be given closer access. We are all customers and none should be treated as less worthy than others. It may not always be easy with the paraphernalia of early parenting but that was a life choice. Someone did say the parent/toddler spaces are not always close to the building but the vast majority are and they take up a considerable portion of the car park – there seem to be more provided every time you visit the store. It would actually be safer to have these spaces in the far flung corner of the car park where there would be less traffic toing and froing with young children in the vicinity.

englishmac

unicornstar wrote: »

I love this! What alot of people forget is that alot of the big supermarkets are in the middle of nowhere meaning you have to drive to them. Back in those days life wasn't as fast paced as it is now. Women now often work as well as being mothers and wouldn't have time to walk to the supermarket. Life was very different years ago so it's not really a good comparison is it?

This is a bit chicken and egg. The supermarkets are in the middle of nowhere because people use their cars. If it hadn't been that way round, they wouldn't have built them in the middle of nowhere because they wouldn't have had any customers. Life may be fast paced now but I bet most of those mothers can you give you the lowdown on the latest shenanigans on Corrie, etc.

It may not have been a good comparison because of the difference in lifestyles but a lot of parents now act like martyrs to the cause. There are a lot of things that make life easier for parents now that weren't available then.