Dear Editor,
As a senior citizen with mobility problems who has lived in Richmond for several decades, one thing I can say with certainty about living in this city is that incidences of the blatant misuse of handicap parking spaces is increasing with every passing year.
The worst offenders of course are those arrogant individuals who do not have a handicap certificate and see nothing wrong with using those spaces.
Second in line would be those who obviously do not have any mobility problems whatsoever but are either using someone else’s certificate or an expired one.
The third candidates are perfectly healthy drivers who believe that having a passenger who is handicapped but remains in the vehicle during a stop makes it appropriate to use the handicap spot for their own convenience.
Such self-centred disregard for the welfare of those who actually need the convenience of being close to their destination rather than causing them to have to struggle across busy parking lots or streets has unfortunately become endemic - a situation that serves to deny elderly and handicapped people the rights and privileges that they deserve.
The behaviours of these offenders appear to indicate a marked absence of any degree of empathy, sympathy, or concern for the welfare of other people - a detrimental character flaw in any person in any context, not just parking lots.
Ray Arnold
Richmond
