Abuse of disabled parking spaces said to be on the increase in Tipperary

The number of able-bodied motorists parking in clearly marked disabled parking spaces in Clonmel is on the increase, it has been stated.

Cllr Siobhán Ambrose also told a meeting of Clonmel Borough District that there was also an increase in the number of motorists double parking beside disabled car parking spaces.

This prevented the disabled person from accessing their car and leaving the disability space.

She had no doubt that additional checks on the disabled parking spaces would greatly reduce these problems, and the traffic wardens should be made aware of this.

Motorists often parked in disabled spaces when they were running into the bank or a shop, and they did it without being even conscious of what they were doing, said Cllr Ambrose.

Cllr Richie Molloy said the usual answer people gave for parking in disabled spaces was that they would be back in five minutes, but that was a huge issue for people with disability badges who wanted to park there.

He appealed for able-bodied people to realise that parking in this way, even for five minutes, is unacceptable.

Cllr Molloy said the traffic wardens did an excellent job but they couldn’t be everywhere.

The sentiments expressed by Cllrs Ambrose and Molloy were supported by District Mayor Pat English.

In her report to the meeting, District Administrator Carol Creighton said that Tipperary County Council employed two full-time traffic wardens.

They had been informed of Cllr Ambrose’s request and had confirmed that they would monitor the disabled spaces closely over the coming months to ensure that any illegal parking was minimised.