LETTER: Car park signs clear enough?

I was issued with a parking ticket at the Union Place NCP car park.

I have been using the Union Place car park in Worthing for many years.

As a disabled person with a blue badge it gives me the freedom and ability to go to the theatre or cinema, as the car park is situated next to the theatre building.

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I parked in a disabled bay on the evening the charge was issued, clearly displaying a valid blue badge with the correct time of my arrival set on the attached disc.

I was, therefore, very upset to find a ticket attached to my windscreen when I returned to my car. Had I known the rules had changed I would happily have bought a pay-and-display ticket.

I visited the car park the next day in daylight and only then saw that there has been a change to the rules for blue badge holders. Again, this is not very clear on the sign at the entrance to the car park as it is written in small print under the blue disabled parking symbol.

The sign is displayed on the passenger side and is, therefore, not clear to the driver on entering the car park. It is also obscured from view from the disabled bays by a small building.

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The ticket machines are situated away from the disabled parking area, so any notice on those would not be seen by anyone in one of the disabled parking bays.

I notice you ran a similar story on November 8. The sign at the entrance has been changed very slightly, but it is still not clear.

I am sure there are others like myself who, have used this car park for many years do not check the sign at all for any changes to the rules for disabled parking.

As Mrs Hitchon said, many disabled people are living on benefits and a £50 to £100 fine is a large sum of money to pay for a parking ticket, especially when it was a genuine error due to the company not putting up clear signage.

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I have written to NCP to appeal this parking charge. I think this issue needs to be highlighted to others and pressure put on to NCP to display clearer signs in the disabled bay area.

It feels as though they are using this change to their parking rules to continue to make money from vulnerable people.

Rosemary McIntosh

Ingleside Crescent

Lancing

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