Should someone who’s driving me around use a disabled parking bay?
That’s a question I ask myself every time a driver asks if he/she can make use of such a bay when I’m in the car with them. And it sends me into a spin trying to figure out how to answer – here’s why:
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A disabled bay is there for anyone for whom not having to traipse long distances to get into a shopping centre or other building makes a difference, right? Well, I may be blind but my legs work just fine. So no, I shouldn’t let my driver use the bay and possibly deprive someone who really needs it.
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Will using the disabled parking bay make my life easier, especially if I’m going to have to navigate a busy parking lot with Fiji, or with a sighted guide who isn’t used to guiding me? Well again yes, undoubtedly so. So maybe there is an argument for us using that parking bay after all. But then, what about the person who really needs it that I may be depriving of the bay?
You’d think that after being blind for so long I’d have made up my mind and decided what’s right, but sadly not.
So, next time you’re driving me somewhere and ask if we can use the disabled bay remember the conundrum your question’s going to cause!
