A59521 DDAI SteeringWheel23 - Flipbook - Page 21
STEERING Wheel
DDAI member Aisling Grouden from Dunshaughlin
has a degree in Early Childhood Education and Care
from TU Blanchardstown and is now a room leader at
a local preschool. A wheelchair user, Aisling has been
driving since she was 21 and she has always relied
totally on her car to attend college, for her busy job,
for grocery shopping and general independence.
Safe and accessible parking bays are very important
to Aisling, who said that she has experience of
seeing cars parking in disabled parking bays that
shouldn’t be there, not only in some of the larger
shopping centre carparks but also outside smaller
supermarkets.
A separate survey of 800 DDAI members revealed
that one third (33%) were unaware that the gardai do
not have the powers to impose 昀椀nes on illegal parking
in private bays. 95% of these respondents said that
those who illegally parked in accessible bays should
face prosecution.
Commenting on the launch of the Bay Watch
campaign, disabled driver and disability equality
campaigner Sean O’Kelly said, “I am delighted to see
such an initiative being brought out. As a wheelchair
user and a driver, I often see cars parked in disabled
spaces without a parking badge in shopping
centre and private car parks. I hope that e昀昀ective
enforcement will be made in the near future. “
Aisling said “I never knew until now that tra昀케c
wardens and garden weren’t allowed to issue tickets
in places like supermarkets, shopping centres and
colleges and I am certainly not alone in wanting to
see the law changed on this. I think it would make
a huge di昀昀erence to people’s willingness to chance
parking in accessible parking bays in these places
without a permit, if they came out and found a €150
昀椀ne on their windscreen.”
I do remember a few situations where if there was
someone parked in a bay without a permit, I would go
in and report it to the shop. I’d rarely approach another
driver on my own for safety reasons. One time I did go
up to a woman myself and all she said was that she
was still going to park there!” Aisling continued.
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