In St. Louis, Missouri, all drivers who use disabled parking placards get to park for free in metered parking spaces. On August 1st, this rule will change so that only people who are incapable of putting a coin in the meter can park without paying.
David J. Neuberger, new head of St. Louis' Office on the Disabled, is behind the change. He calls it a stride toward equality for people with disabilities. "People with disabilities have a right to a level playing field, but people with disabilities do not have a right to
special favors," he says. Newburger -- himself a polio survivor who uses a wheelchair -- believes the current rules have spread beyond the intent of the law and allows people to game the system.
Many other people with disabilities disagree. In a city that allows people to park all day as long as they return to
feed their parking meters every two hours, a person who works eight
hours a day and parks in a metered spot will pay about $1500 on parking
each year. Not having to feed the meter every two hours can mean the difference between maintaining employment and being too exhausted to work, argue many disability advocates, including Newburger's predecessor.
In addition to needing to obtain parking permits or license plates, city employees with disabilities will now need to prove their need for accessible reserved parking to Newburger. If a person has a "visually obvious" disability, he or she will be able to get a special space for the same fee other city employees pay ($60-$80, depending on the parking lot). If the person's disability is not visually obvious, he or she will have to be evaluated by a Washington University occupational therapist at the city's expense before buying a parking space.
Disaboomers: what do you think? Should city parking for people with disabilities be free or discounted? Should the rule apply equally to all people with disabilities, or only those who have trouble putting coins in a parking meter?
Related: Boston Police Headquarters a Hotbed of Handicapped Parking Violations
Photo credit: quarsan
