“Some totally healthy jerk without the blue handicap sign was parking in the handicap spot. He was sitting in the car, letting it idle. I suppose he was waiting for somebody, who was probably in the bank.”
Well, to be fair, villian in this instance isn’t parked…he’s “standing” in the spot with his engine running. If the Old Guy really wanted the spot, all OG had to do was pull up and beep. In the end OG has to walk essentially because of being phobic about a fairly mild confrontation.
I might be in the minority, but I see nothing wrong with getting out of traffic by standing in the handicap spot, with the expectation. of “bugging out” if a bone fide handicapped shows up.
Also, just because driver is not handicapped, that does not neccesarially mean driver’s passenger (that had to walk to the bank, remember) isn’t. If I’m “driving Miss Daisy” around, I’m at least standing in the handicap spot for her sake, legally entitled or not!
On a serious note though I do believe zoning and building codes or the lack thereof create some of these problems. Small lots with short driveways, too little parking areas for businesses, houses without garages and parking areas, etc. Some of these are older areas in the center of cities but others are new areas where they try to cram as many lots or buildings as they can. I don’t have a problem because I’ve got a big driveway and no sidewalk. Other parts of town though theres no room to park a car in the drive without hanging out into the street.
I agree with you . . . the guy in the car was a villain
“fairly mild confrontation.”
Really? How do you know that?
When confronting somebody, how do you know they won’t pull a gun on you?
Years ago, my friend mouthed off to some guy, who didn’t take it very well. I was the voice of reason. I talked to the offended guy and convinced him that my friend was drunk and didn’t know what he was saying. This happened to be the truth. The whole time, I noticed the guy was holding a blade in his pocket. It was clear, because I saw the point in the pocket, and I saw his hand on the handle.
In any case, the offended guy took his hand out of his pocket, and left the blade in there. In the end he said let’s just forget the whole thing and we parted ways.
I could easily see a violent confrontation arising when somebody suggests that somebody else vacate a parking spot. Assaults have started for lesser things
Shame on you for even pointing any fingers at the disabled guy with the cane and the bad legs
If you have a disabled passenger, you stand (not park) in the Handicap spot to ingress/egress passenger…because you NEED the space to maneuver the walker of whatnot.
If somebody comes up and says, “Pardon me, but you’re in my spot,” you just say, “Why certainly! Let me vacate this spot forthwith” and move.
Also, I’d appreciate it if you remove the last sentence in your response. You have no knowledge of me outside thus forum, and how much or how little class I exhibit on a daily basis. Throwing out a personal dig like that, simply as a result of an honest difference of opinions, is inflammatory and contrary to forum rules and internet etiquette. (I’ll give you the benefit of the doubt, though, and just assume you’ve had a bad day.)
B.L.E You are correct. In the business district of our capital city they have parking enforcement. Otherwise law enforcement have much better things to worry about (like doughnuts). This topic reminds me of around July 4th. My Grandson’s pre- school had scheduled a patriotic themed bicycle parade from their school about 3 blocks to a retirement center. The kids and their parents spent a lot of time decorating their bikes with red, white, and blue. The kids had to cross the residential street. The school and teachers correctly decided they should cross a block from the school as traffic from a busy boulevard could turn onto the street. There were no real blocks as there were no side streets. A crossing point had been designated. Unfortunately a total AZZhole had parked their giant 4 door 8 foot bed pick-up with 12 foot trailer in their driveway. Not only blocking the sidewalk but a good portion of the street. There was plenty of much more appropriate curb parking available but as already stated these morons have no concern for the other 7 billion people in the world! Since the kids were not allowed to ride in the street about 2 dozen bicycles were lifted over the trailer tongue plus 2dozen kids climbing over it. We then proceeded less than 30 feet and crossed the street at the designated place. There was no good reason they could not cross before the obstruction. “Sheeple” can only follow orders. They cannot make a logical decision. Everything went well when we reached the retirement home. The kids sang America the Beautiful and the National Anthem. All of the elderly people showed proper respect. A few veterans knew as I do that since October 2007 veterans and military personnel not in uniform are allowed to present arms (salute) during the National Anthem. On the way back all of the kids crossed the street before the obstruction. That gives me some hope for the future.
Just a point of order is all. If a normally mobile person is driving a person with mobility issues, they certainly can use the handicap stall for parking and waiting for the individual to come back out of the store-provided though-that the person has a handicap hang tag and it is displayed. A lot of places still only have one stall so really first come first serve but you still have to have the hang tag. Its portable so it can go from car to car but has to be transporting the person it was issued to. Did this many times with my dad but there was also another stall always available.
@Bing: The state’s not going to issue you a HC plate because you occasionally drive a non-blood relative places.
The spirit (though not the letter) of the law is served by using the HC spot to aid your passenger. As to the letter…has it ever been shown that idling an occupied vehicle in a HC spot is a violation? I think it depends on the exact wording of the statute, and possibly how the statute defines “parking.”
As @db4690 notes, its not going to be a police officer in most halfway large cities, but someone from the traffic control department (or whatever it’s called locally.) In other words, a ‘meter maid’. The parking enforcement folks have different priorities than the police.
Here in San Francisco they started actively going after people like that truck owner about a decade ago because wheelchair owners couldn’t get through. Here it’s illegal to park in your driveway unless your vehicle clears the sidewalk completely. San Francisco driveways are rarely that long. After a bunch of very expensive tickets were written the message got through to people.
I thought the law was extreme, because on many streets the sidewalks are quite wide. Insisting on sidewalk clearance of some specific amount would have acheved the same result without making every driveway useless. However, it did have a good result. Quite a few people had been parking on the sidewalk up against their houses, usually partially blocking the sidewalks. I was happy to see those jerks cited
I agree with @B.L.E. Feuds with neighbors over where they park their car on their own property is pretty anal. And, hearing where at least one of you carries a shot gun, for " just such occasions" means some are out looking for trouble and not avoiding it. Enough trouble during our driving lives will find us and we need not look for it or get involved as in the past. Every one it seems has a gun and everyone has a cell phone it seems. Choose to use the cell phone and avoid confrontation to save some one else and avoid at all costs, personal confrontations with neighbors. He may be the guy who decides not to call the fire department when your house is ablaze if you have Pissed him off. Always stay on good terms with everyone who lives anywhere near you. Swallow your pride…or move. It isn’t worth it. I learned this the hard way working at a job I had to break things like this up. It isn’t worth it to anyone.
In our neighborhood, miles from no where on a dirt road, everyone bonds, everyone carries a tow rope and our neighbors can do no wrong. We all depend on each other and they can park on my freak’n lawn if they want and party all night long. They have and I look the other way or join them and throw a little grass seed down the next day. Why ? Because they keep an eye on my house when I go for two week cruises. Life is good when you have good neighbors. Keep them that way.
if you had just knocked on his door and told him about your concern the result may have been different.
you call the police on someone five times for a trivial matter, like a slight encroachment of the sidewalk, and now have a situation that could really be serious.
now it could get to the point where you feel nervous in your own home or yard.
it seems like a no-brainer that you would have given the guy a chance to correct the situation first.
plus, now the dispatcher probably rolls their eyes when your number pops up on the caller ID, which is never good.
on my street we have driveways and street parking in front of our houses. its fairly busy and often I have to wait a minute before I have time to back out of my driveway. I don t park on the street because a number of my neighbors have been sideswiped by passing cars.
one of my neighbors chooses not use his driveway and instead parks with two wheels up on the side walk in front of his driveway, to avoid being sideswiped. this annoys me but I choose my battles, and would not call the police over it. he also has dangerous pitbulls.
I would have, and I will call the police if I ever see them leave his yard again. I will shoot them if they enter my yard, and I will have a criminal record probably if I shoot in town limits.
some things are worth fighting and suffering for others are not
@meanjoe75fan Just to clarify. HC tags are issued to individuals not to cars. It requires a Dr.'s statement of mobility impairment, then application to the state. A hang tag can be used only by the person it is issued to for either their car or the car they are being transported in. Simply put though, in order to park in a HC stall, you have to have the hang tag displayed. You can’t just park there without the hang tag regardless of whether the person they are waiting for is frail. They have to have been issued the permit. So either they have the permit or not. If they do they can park there but if not they can’t even if they are in the car idling and attended. Its really pretty cut and dried.
Bing “Just to clarify. HC tags are issued to individuals not to cars.” That’s exactly how it works in my State. I really hate the drivers with no HC tag using the spaces. Even worse are the young healthy drivers that I see hang a tag then hop out and walk briskly into the business. Sure, they can borrow Grandma’s car but they can’t borrow her tag. Or worse yet Grandma passed away and they think they have inherited her tag. Tags here are good for 8 years so the azzholes could illegally use their “inheritance” for quite some time. I hope illegal use of the tag carries a far worse penalty than a parking ticket!
The situation in large crowded parking lots can bring out the best and worst in people and the very worst often occurs at the handicap spaces. I have HC tags and while I try to avoid shopping when stores are crowded when it can’t be avoided I am amazed at the jockeying and blocking that goes on to get a ‘good’ parking slot regardless whether its blue or not. And often those who want to drop their wife off and wait while she runs in will sit in an HC slot to watch for her exit and that is annoying.
But in all honesty my reason for getting the tags was to prevent being reported as a drunk driver. I have been pulled over three times within a few blocks of a store where I had shopped and someone who saw me walking mistook my Frankenstein gate for a drunken stupor. Now if someone reads my tag to report me they hopefully will realize I’m not a problem.
If the temperature tops 95* or there’s a monsoon rain I will take advantage of my tags but shopping at off hours usually gives me lots of open spaces, some more convenient than the HC slots.
I have the same problem rod. I do all sorts of weird contortions and wiggles and flexes when I walk, just to put things back in place and relieve pain. i walk to a nearby liquor store for sodas and snacks and had many people think i m a drunk as i wobble in and out.
I remember sitting at an all you can eat buffet, it was raining, a car with hc permission pulled up, 6 people ran out of the car to the restaraunt. Maybe walking was hard. Image as promised. If it was not 2 or 3 times a week I would not complain.
barky, I don t have a handicap plate and don t plan to get one even tho I could. there are people who need the HC spot more than I do.
it hurts to walk, my back is destroyed from hard work and I have one lung.
even I could jog a few steps to get out of the rain. that does not mean they were not HC.