People living with disabilities are still feeling ‘”a lack of respect” due to people misusing mobility carparks, despite the fine amount being increased last year.
In October last year the government increased the amount individuals had to pay if they parked in a mobility park without a permit from $150 to $750.
Whangārei District Council told the Northern Advocate this week that 214 infringements were issued in the eight months since the higher fines came into force.
It was up from 158 issued during the previous eight-month period when the lower fine was still in effect.
The council told the Advocate that of the 214 fines, 32 had been paid, 43 had been successfully disputed, and the rest were either in court or approaching the 56-day referral period.
CCS Disability Action research showed there were approximately 180,000 mobility parking permit holders across the country, a number that was rising alongside an ageing population.
The organisation said misuse was still widespread.
‘A lack of respect for people with disabilities’
Juliana Carvalho from Access Matters Aotearoa trust told Breakfast that low compliance and fines still being handed out showed “a lack of respect for people with disabilities”.
“It’s a manifestation of ableism. Those small actions that send a powerful message that they don’t care about our needs.”
She said mobility parks were not a privilege, but a “doorway to equity”.
“When you take that space without needing it, you just not like breaking the rule but you are blocking the ability for someone else to participate in society.
“It’s not about convenience. It’s about access to work, access to healthcare, to community. And when you use this space you say, consciously or not, that our time, our needs and our dignity matter less.”
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Carvalho said the current fine amount of $750 was enough, but that the “missing part” to solve the problem was enabling enforcement, and better education.
“In private and public spaces, so I think raising the fee without raising awareness and resourcing enforcement or public education just looks like a revenue grab.
“I think real change can come when people see accessibility as a human right, not a privilege. And that requires more than fines, it requires leadership.”
Enforcement agency says onus is on businesses
The founder of Canary, New Zealand’s only privately-owned mobility parking enforcement agency, said there has been an increase in enforcement with the increase of fines.
“So you will see more of it, because wardens are actively going out and checking more, but there is an increase in selfishness these days, sadly,” Tim Andrews told Breakfast.
Andrews said enforcing the fines at private businesses was up to individual businesses.
“It really depends on the property owners or the lessees themselves, to actually take the steps and make sure their parks are being enforced, are free for those who need them most.
He said Canary provided a service to businesses which would check for misuse, and issue breaches to those who don’t comply.
Andrews agreed the fine amount was enough, and that the main issue was “a resourcing problem”.
“There just aren’t enough feet on the ground or the technology there behind it to catch people. When you have a 3% chance of being caught, if that, people just don’t care enough to do it.”
