Accessible Parking.

 

Present condition of handicapped parking.

Problem 1: Violation and misuse of accessible parking lots.

The misuse of accessible parking has become a pervasive issue in contemporary society. The general public may deem momentarily "borrowing" accessible parking from the disabled to be trivial and inconsequential, thereby compromising the convenience of the disabled. Yet paradoxically, this perilous circumstance is not unique to Malaysia; it’s a worldwide phenomenon. As a result, the majority of authorities are recruiting more security officers or concierges to remain near the parking spots and remove cone barricades when authorized disabled individuals need to use the parking. 

Although this method is somewhat effective at preventing violations, it increases the workload of security officers and concierges and prevents them from ensuring the buildings' tranquilly. Deplorably, not only do cases of violation occur among able-bodied drivers but also among those with disabilities. In actuality, only certain categories of disabled individuals, namely those with an identification card bearing a reference number beginning with "PH," i.e., those with a physical disability, are eligible to utilize handicapped parking. Nonetheless, because our country lacks a comprehensive system that can verify a person's disability beyond checking their identification card when security guards are present, people who are not genuinely disabled but have a sticker on their car windows indicating they are disabled would be able to take advantage of disabled parking spaces. 

Occasionally, the incorrect stickers could also result in a disabled person's vehicle being incorrectly fined or impounded. In addition, because the labels are the sole determinant of whether a person is permitted to use the parking when they are away from their vehicle, able-bodied individuals could potentially purchase the sticker and use the accessible parking, as these stickers are easily obtainable.

Problem 2: Inadequate parking for disabled.

As the number of disabled individuals has increased from 453 thousand in 2017 to 637 thousand by 2023, the demand for accessible parking spaces is progressively outpacing the supply. For its reason, most places only have a limited number of accessible parking as the standard accessible parking will take up a lot of space. And the scenario tends to be worse in older buildings and public areas where accessible parking was not a priority during the initial planning stages of construction, and where retrofitting existing facilities to include accessible parking would be laborious and costly.

Future: Ideal condition of disabled individuals.

In the next 30 or 40 years, I hope to see a society where people with disabilities are treated with dignity and are free from all forms of violation; a society in which the below-described parking system is ubiquitous, but people refrain from violating accessible parking out of compassion for those with physical limitations. However, it is envisioned that their consciousness would go beyond the realm of impaired parking and include the elimination of all forms of discrimination as well as the provision of any and all services to which they are entitled, thereby creating a society that welcomes minorities.

How to bridge the present with the ideal state.

Solution 1: Blue Badge Guardian: Intelligent parking system.

To begin, the first remedy to the violation of accessible parking is to employ a system dubbed "Blue Badge Guardian," which is derived from a project I presented to a previous competition in 2019. Simply put, this parking system will employ Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) and a retractable bollard system to prevent unauthorized parking in designated impaired spaces. 

For instance, a person with a physical disability who has been granted access to accessible parking can easily scan their OKU identification card to validate their identity and obtain entry. This ensures that neither able-bodied nor disabled individuals will violate accessible parking because the database will contain the information and RFID tags of those who have been granted access. 

On the contrary, if an invalid RFID card or OKU identification card that does not meet the criteria for accessible parking is presented, the bollard will not descend.

Solution 2: Collaboration with different stakeholders to promote public awareness.

Indeed, there will be locations where the parking system is unavailable due to the complexity of its construction and the costs associated with constructing it in enormous numbers. Additionally, the implementation of the parking system may have an ephemeral effect, as people are unlikely to cease exploiting accessible parking out of benevolence but rather because they are hindered from doing so. Therefore, it is of paramount importance to eradicate the underlying cause of the infringement, which is the lack of public awareness regarding the significance of accessible parking spaces for those with physical disabilities. Additionally, virtual reality (VR) experiences could be utilized for organizing immersive campaigns on the misuse of handicapped parking that include activities that help the attendees get a glimpse of and resonate with the challenges faced by people with disabilities when searching for and securing parking spaces.

Ergo, a feasible answer to this issue would be to collaborate with various stakeholders to promote public awareness of the needs of the disabled. Since the endeavor to raise public awareness involves multiple stakeholders who increase the potential to use different mediums, including the adoption of television, radio, and social media platforms, such as user-generated content, in addition to conventional campaigns, it could gain greater exposure and increase the likelihood of people being positively influenced by the content produced. As a result, people will be subliminally influenced by the deluge of content that encourages them to view the issue from various angles and put themselves in disabled people’s shoes.

Solution 3: Create an application that facilitates parking-sharing programmes.

In addition to boosting the number of accessible parking spaces, JKMM could introduce an application that facilitates shared-parking programmes to alleviate the parking shortage. In older structures and public spaces that were not originally designed with adequate parking accessibility, it may be prudent to employ shared parking arrangements. To exemplify, this shared-parking programme could involve businesses, government agencies, private residences, and public facilities to provide readily available parking spaces to serve as temporary accessible parking for the disabled during specified time periods; this will be referred to as universal parking with clear signage. Thus, when a number of vacant parking spaces are available, the application could show the availability of inclusive parking and grant authorized individuals with disabilities to utilize that space.

Reflection.

The reason I'm writing about the subject on my blog is because of a project I completed five years ago, and it appears that the condition of accessible parking has not improved since then. Consequently, addressing this issue may increase drivers' awareness of the significance of accessible parking, with the aim of pulling the plug on the misuse of accessible parking.

References.

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