One of the overlooked aspects of the law applied to parking spaces. Yes, there were Handicapped Parking Spaces before 1990, but there was no enforcement in place for new buildings.
In Montana, there were perfectly accessible buildings going up everywhere but in many cases, a person with a disability, PWD, could not get from their car to the front door.
These days, having an accessible parking lot is part of the inspection process for new construction and remodeling.
This should have solved a huge problem for PWDs, but many businesses do not keep their access features in good repair.
There also seems to be a problem with defining who is responsible for maintenance.
The gym I use had a whole parking lot redo a few years ago. The gym is in a mall type area, all of the stores share the spaces. The sidewalks and islands went in at first without any accessible features. No one could answer my questions about where the curb ramps and handicap accessible spaces had gone or if they were coming back.
I called the city and inquired about how the inspectors dropped the ball on such a messed up plan. After looking into it another redo occurred. I am sure the ratio of handicapped to regular parking is wrong, but at least the ramps and signs went up.
One way to make your own Handicap Parking Space is to carry an Orange Traffic Cone. I carried a traffic cone in my car, it was stolen, so I need a new one. When the handicapped spaces were full at the gym, I would plop the cone out beside my car door to assure I would have the space I needed to load myself and my service dog into my car. I recommend a cone for everyone who uses these spaces or is forced to use a regular space. This is especially handy if a PWD needs to access the back door of a van in order to deploy a lift.
Back to my complaint. A few days ago, I pulled into my space and noticed an untagged person was parked in the space next to me. The sign marking the space had blown off or been taken. The Handicapped Logo paint marking the black-top was almost worn away, so I figured it wasn’t the Temporarily Able Bodieds, TABs, fault. The space hasn’t been maintained.
A phone call to the closest store to the space got me a manager who said she’d make a note of it for another manager. The sign is still down. No one knows who maintains it.
I am left with a few options. I could track down the owner of the building. I could buy them a new sign and ask someone to come out and put it up. I could boycott the place, but I need to use the treadmill.
Since this is a law, I should take out my cell phone and call the police department and let them figure out who is in charge of fixing the Handicapped Spaces that are Out of Order. I can’t help thinking that the local police have enough to do with all those drivers who turn left on red.
Access is a civil right. A moral obligation. Keeping the accessible features in good working order is mandated by the ADA. Enforcement of the Act is not automatic. This is a shame. It ought to be a crime.
Thanks for staying with me and come visit again. Feel free to comment, I’ll be writing another post in a few days.
Comments
4 responses to “When Your Space is Missing”
The railroads generally post signs with phone numbers to call at crossing gates–these are a handy way to inform the road that a gate is stuck or otherwise malfunctioning.
Too bad the ADA spaces don’t carry a number to call when something goes awry. Having such a line would, of course, require funding–even if it were automated–and more bureaucracy. But having the hodge-podge of people to call now when spaces are misused or improperly maintained doesn’t help anyone.
Malcolm
There actually is a central complaint number if you plan on waiting a long time. It is free to send a complaint to the Department of Justice, but they are really back logged. I reported a small town in Montana who said to me that they would rather close the rest-rooms and water fountains than make them accessible. Yep, true story. I did go to the DOJ and to this day they have access and need to prove they are keeping it up. By the time the DOJ handled the case, very well, I have to add, I no longer lived there.
I thought the article was interesting about the difficulty being a disabled driver. Having the necessary provided parking spot so that it is easier to get into the store. Nice story
It was new to a lot of people who didn’t realize this was happening, especially on new construction. The insides of the shops were state of the art by the code handicapped accessible but totally useless because PWDs couldn’t get from the car to the front door.