Cost-cutting plans to charge disabled people for parking spaces outside their homes have been branded “appalling” and could be means-tested.
Bristol City Council currently installs dedicated vehicle bays for free near homes of disabled residents who have no off-street parking and where finding a space nearby is difficult.
Introducing a fee for the advisory white markings is one of the savings in the council’s proposed budget to help claw back a £19.5million shortfall and balance the books.
READ MORE: Bristol City Council proposed budget hits motorists hard
Conservative opposition Cllr John Goulandris criticised the idea at a council meeting, but the Labour cabinet member overseeing the proposals tried to justify them by insisting not everyone with disabilities was poor and that “many” had “high-flying jobs”.
Papers approved by cabinet earlier this month and recommended to full council on February 15 say the suggestion is “not profit-led and will only recover the actual costs incurred” of £100,000 a year.
They say: “The proposal is likely to have a disproportionate impact on disabled people and their carers – especially those living in low-income households unless there are concessions/waived fees.”
But cabinet member for transport Cllr Don Alexander told a meeting of the resources scrutiny commission: “It’s not necessarily true that everyone who needs a parking bay or who is disabled is poor.
“There are many people who are disabled who are in high-flying jobs with good incomes and we need to look at it in a more granular way and hopefully save some money because actually there are other things like pavements that we aren’t doing so well because we are short of money and those are really important to people with disabilities as well.”
He said some local authorities charged for the service, although it had not yet been decided what a reasonable fee would be in Bristol.
Asked whether it would be means-tested, Cllr Alexander said: “We already don’t do it in every case. If someone has off-road parking, we won’t do a bay.
“We also don’t do it where we judge there to be reasonable parking in the street already. We run it through those kind of filters to ascertain whether it’s really necessary.
“So it seems reasonable to look at whether a person can afford to pay for it so that it frees up more money for those who can't.
'We desperately need the money'
“But we will consult on it. We haven't decided on the details yet, so we will talk to disability groups about that.
“To be brutally honest we desperately need the money for other good things in transport.
“We need to be realistic about the financial cost of transport. Income from government has gone down and down for 10 years now.”
Cllr Goulandris said: “You mentioned that some disabled people may or may not be in work, but for some disabled people the car is a lifeline – they can’t use public transport, they can’t cycle, they can’t walk.
“So you’re now saying we are going to be charging lots of parking fees for disabled people?”
Cllr Alexander replied: “No, those are words from your mouth, John. We will not be charging lots of parking fees for disabled people. We will be talking to disabilities groups.
“We are already letting down some people with disabilities with the standards of our maintenance."
Stoke Bishop ward Cllr Goulandris said: “I’m confused now. So are we going to be charging the disabled to park in Bristol? Yes or no?”
The cabinet member said no decision had been made and it was in the budget “in principle”.
Cllr Goulandris asked: “So in principle we are going to be charging the disabled to park in Bristol?”
The Labour councillor said: “In principle we will be charging disabled people but we will be consulting on that, and all consultation is genuine.”
Cllr Goulandris told the City Hall meeting on Tuesday, January 25: “I would like it recorded in the minutes that I am appalled with that suggestion.”
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