Didn't take long to find something to whinge about in 2014 although it's bugged me for ages; disabled parking
The blue badge scheme is a great idea but it is subject to so much abuse and misuse, its value is undermined. There are 2 obvious problems and 1 more controversial one. First there are the people without badges who are simply too f***ing lazy and selfish, so simply ignore the restrictions. When I could still speak I used to enjoy challenging these people just to hear there excuses and watch them squirm! The most frequent response was "oh sorry, I didn't realise it was disabled" or "I was only going to be 5 minutes". Even if in the unlikely event of this being true, it's of little consolation when I arrive during those 5 minutes and can't park. The next offending group are those with legitimate blue badges but seem to have forgotten the disabled person! These people are harder to challenge because the number of excuses is greater and occasionally more plausible, such as they're picking up the disabled person, to which you can't really argue, although 95% of the time it's total b******s
I HAVE actually challenged someone using eyegaze computer voice, but eyegaze typing doesn't lend itself to arguments and they are long gone before I have finished typing "you are a selfish c***"!
The final problem is more controversial. I have lost count of the times I have been sitting in Bushy Park car park and seen cars with blue badges park next to me, and someone emerges with the tiniest of limps and proceeds to walk a mile around the lake. I don't want to get involved in a cripple competition but it does annoy me. It's not such a problem in car parks with multiple disabled parking spaces but when the single space outside a London theater has been taken by a "limper", it is infuriating
I don't know what the answer is, I have thought maybe they should introduce a two tier system which helps ensure the most premium spaces can only be used by the most needy. I guess it's too costly and complicated to achieve and like many of those limpers do already, people will simply exaggerate their disability to get the higher level. While on the subject of questionable applications for a blue badge, there is a more serious implication of exaggerated claims. Because one of the criteria for a blue badge is qualifying for the higher level of disability living allowance, it means many people will be receiving several thousand pounds each year with questionable legitimacy.
.
.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
Posts
4 comments:
I was very surprised when a work colleague of mine, HIV+, was given a disabled badge. He was 23, spritely, fit, and perfectly able to bop the night away. He always laughed that he could now park anywhere. Not to decry his condition, but he honestly did not need the badge.
Hi steve, so nice to have you blogging like crazy .
I was going to comment the other day but your next post beat me to it... Anyway, even if it is a moan, it's certainly an extremely valid one!
Hope to see you soon
I can fully appreciate your frustration Steve. By coincidence there was a phone-in on the radio yesterday about just this topic. I don't usually listen to such things but motorway driving can be very boring! Apparently you can get a blue badge if you're obese. The DJ's rather witty response was "don't they need the exercise?"
Caroline
My dad's got a badge and he's only mildly disabled. I don't think those who have them fully (including my dad) realise their responsibility especially if there's only one space. I'll get onto him!
Post a Comment