'Bristol needs more parking for disabled'

Disabled people say they are having trouble visiting Bristol's theatres and cinemas because there are too few parking bays for them.

 

Cotham resident Jill Ford and her friend Catherine Mercer, from Clifton, raised the issue with city councillor Neil Harrison.

 

Ms Ford said: "I like to visit the Watershed cinema with my friend who has breathing problems and can't walk very far.

 

"There are two dedicated bays at the back of the Watershed, but these are often full as they serve the whole of the waterfront area.

 

"It makes it really difficult to manage trips out."
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Ms Mercer said: "Available parking space would make a real difference to disabled drivers whose lives are often severely restricted."

 

Councillor Harrison, 35, who lives in Burlington Road, Cotham, said: "I was alerted to some of the problems by local residents. For example, the disabled parking bays by the Colston Hall have been temporarily taken away for the building works.

 

"The nearest parking is now in the Trenchard Street car park. This is quite a walk away for a person with mobility issues.

 

"To make it worse, you can't pre-pay for parking at weekends, leaving disabled people having to queue for a long time.

 

"I have contacted the managers of both the Colston Hall and the Watershed.

 

"While they are sympathetic to the problem, they aren't in a position to find solutions. I have also spoken to the parking managers in the council, but they tell me that there is nothing they can do either.

 

"We can't have a large section of our society being excluded from accessing the cultural highlights of the city.

 

"There may well be problems with other venues too. The council needs to do a full audit and find immediate solutions for Colston Hall and the Watershed."

 

Rae Gingell, co-chair of the council's Disability Equality Forum, said: "There is insufficient provision to Blue Badge holders wanting to use roadside parking spaces in the centre.

 

"There has been an increase in the number of disabled people requiring these spaces yet the number of available spaces is decreasing.

 

"This effectively limits disabled people's access to goods, services and leisure venues albeit by indirect discrimination. We would like the new administration to address this situation as soon as possible."

 

This Is Bristol, 2nd April 2009