People Parking Illegally In Accessible Spots Is Rising In Ottawa & Tickets Are Over $400
By-law Services issued 100 tickets in one week.
By-law officer issues parking ticket in a Costco parking lot.
People parking illegally in accessible spots is on the rise in Ottawa and the City says that they have given out 100 tickets to people without permits in over a week.
"This is definitely higher than average," said Alison Sandor, Public Information Officer for Ottawa's By-law Regulatory Services.
"Grocery stores are very busy. And you know, people just want to get in, grab what they want to get, go. But we're seeing a lot of people without a permit parking in these spaces. Enforcement like this is really important because who else is going to ensure that these spaces are available for the people who need them?"
At around 12:30 p.m. on May 31, Ottawa By-law Services announced that it has issued the tickets across the city since May 24. A photo posted to Twitter shows an officer issuing a parking ticket in a "by permit only" space at the Costco parking lot at Blair Towers Place.
"While parking spaces may be limited, please do your part to ensure that Accessible Parking spaces are free to be used by those who need them," tweeted Ottawa By-law services.
Parking in an accessible spot could mean a $450 ticket
As per City of Ottawa rules, there needs to be at least one parking space reserved for persons with disabilities for parking lots with 22 to 99 spaces. And for parking lots with 100 to 199 spots, there needs to be at least two dedicated spots for persons with disabilities.
People without disabilities are not permitted to use the designated spaces, "unless a valid accessible parking permit is displayed on its dashboard or on the sun visor in accordance with the provisions of the Highway Traffic Act." People who are travelling with a person with a disability may be able to park in the reserved space if they receive permission and display a permit.
The City also notes that vehicles with permits can't be parked in accessible spaces if a person with a disability is not travelling with them.
People who illegally park in accessible parking spaces may also face a $450 fine, in accordance with the Provincial Offences Act.
"It's really really important that people do their part to ensure that these spaces are available for the people who need them," says Sandor.
"And it's also really important to know, too, that people have different disabilities and different abilities. And you can't judge somebody just based on whether they're walking, what they look like. If they're issued a permit, leave it to us to determine whether or not this permit is being misused."