By GEORGIA WESTGARTH
SELFISH Casey motorists are being slugged thousands of dollars in parking fines for depriving disabled residents of the in-demand bays.
Close to 14,000 Casey residents hold disabled parking permits yet the council is inundated with an endless flow of complaints about misuse of the sought after bays.
Mayor Sam Aziz said in January and February this year around 200 infringements were issued in Casey over disabled parking bays.
“The council is appealing to all drivers in the community to respect the purpose of car parks for people with a disability,” Cr Aziz said.
“The disabled parking bays make the difference for a person with a disability and their carer to be able to have equitable access in the community.”
The illegal use of the high-demand bays can cost drivers who exploit them up to $152.
Concerned about recent dimension changes made to new disabled bays, the Casey council has written to Standards Australia.
Cr Amanda Stapledon said: “Revised disabled parking bay width of 2.4m does not provide the flexibility for positioning a car into the bay that the previous 3.2m space provided.”
