According to Disabled Motoring UK’s Baywatch Report, 86% of car parks have at least one disabled parking bay being misused.
With most sites having fewer than 10 accessible spaces, even one being out of action can be a big problem for people trying to find somewhere suitable to park.
With such a widespread problem, it’s important that something gets done.
That’s where Evology Access comes in.
How it works
We use automatic number plate recognition (ANPR) housed in a specialised bollard to protect bays. These are cameras commonly found in car parks that track vehicle registrations. They help with lots of the services people use, from paid parking to permits. But we’re using them in a slightly different way to protect spaces.
The camera monitors a space and cross-checks vehicle registrations with blue badge information provided by drivers.
This means that we can make sure that people using those spaces are the people who are supposed to be there.
It’s not all about catching people out, the bollard stands out, so it serves as a warning and hopefully makes people rethink where they want to park.
How it makes a difference
We’ve probably all seen someone parking where they shouldn’t at some point.
Whether that’s someone just quickly nipping into a shop for five minutes, or someone who just parks where they like and doesn’t care about the consequences.
That “I’ll be quick” might sound fair enough at the time, but if that’s the only accessible space, and someone arrives who needs to park there, that 5 minutes suddenly makes things a lot harder for someone who needs the extra room. They might have to drive around a car park looking for somewhere to park, or they need to go somewhere else, which means that blocking that space has now inconvenienced someone and cost a business money.
See how it snowballs?
Finding a way to stop this makes a massive difference to everyone who relies on that car park. It gives drivers the spaces they need, stops staff needing to hunt down and confront selfish drivers and protects businesses from having to deal with complaints.
Stopping spaces getting misused makes life easier for so many different people.
Control without confrontation
One part of the report stated that 79% of motorists using accessible spaces in a car park have felt judged, watched or received negative comments.
Confrontation over the use of accessible parking spaces can be awkward and distressing for everyone, from staff in a business to the person actually using the space. Especially when you factor in how many people deal with hidden disabilities and could be wrongfully accused of misusing a space.
Evology Access protects people from those situations. Removing awkward confrontation so people who need spaces don’t feel called out, and people who think they are doing the right thing avoid embarrassment.
Trying to protect peace of mind
There’s an element of stress that comes from trying to park, especially when someone needs to park somewhere specific just to make their day a bit easier.
Making people rethink their behaviour when it comes to where they park changes how a car park works. Suddenly, people can find the spaces they need, there’s no more driving around looking for somewhere suitable to park, or even worse, someone having to abandon their trip because they can’t find the space they need.
The bollard does a great job of reminding people to be more considerate, and we even saw changes in one car park before we even switched it on
This is a change to car parks that makes a genuine difference, giving people back time, taking away stress, and hopefully challenging a behaviour we could all do without, making car parks a more considerate place to be.
