More than 40 Whangārei drivers ticketed for unauthorised parking in disability parks have managed to escape paying the fine. Photo / File
More than 40 Whangārei drivers ticketed for unauthorised parking in disability parks have managed to escape paying the fine. Photo / File
Questions have been raised as to how 43 Whangārei drivers ticketed for unauthorised parking in disability parks managed to escape paying the fine.
Last month, the Northern Advocate reported 214 tickets for misuse of disability spaces had been issued by Whangārei District Council (WDC) parking wardens since the nationwide penaltyincreased from $150 to $750 last October.
The information was supplied by the council’s health and bylaws manager Reiner Mussle, who also provided the number of drivers to successfully dispute the ticket.
Mussle explained the usual reason infringements were waived was because of an administrative error on council’s part or because a driver had been able to provide clear evidence they did not commit an infringable offence.
He said the proportion of waiver requests remained consistent with levels before the fine increase.
“When someone parks without a mobility card, they’re showing complete disrespect to the disabled community," Whangārei disability advisory group member Wendy Giffin says.
Giffin highlighted the Whangārei Library and hospital as hotspots for abuse of mobility parking, the latter being a particular source of frustration for patients arriving late to appointments because of lack of accessible parking.
Northern Advocate readers also questioned why, if increased fines were failing to deter able-bodied drivers from using disability parking spaces, the council did not take more drastic action, such as wheel-clamping unauthorised vehicles.
Mussle said transport regulations meant the council could only tow a vehicle when it had been deemed abandoned or there was a clear and immediate safety risk, such as a car blocking a clearway during peak-hour traffic.
Giffin said she had been approached by members of the public since her comments in the previous article, including by a security guard who reported being abused while asking people to move from mobility parks at the i-Site centre.
She questioned the transparency of the appeals process.
“I’d like to know how drivers have been able to ‘provide clear evidence’ that they did not commit an infringement offence.”
Giffin advised people reporting unauthorised users of the spaces to photograph the absence of a mobility card, which should be clearly displayed on the dashboard or rear vision mirror; number plates; and the vehicle’s position to avoid disputes.
She said she had asked the council whether any data is kept on repeat offenders and was told no such records exist.
Sarah Curtis is a news reporter for the Northern Advocate, focusing on a wide range of issues. She has nearly 20 years’ experience in journalism, much of which she spent court reporting in Gisborne and on the East Coast. She is passionate about covering stories that make a difference.
