Editorial: Common sense should prevail in mobility parking bylaw

David Seymour has lobbied the Whangarei District Council to not charge for disabled parking.

I have a feeling that next week Whangarei's parking by-laws will not include a charge for disabled and mobility parking - the status quo will remain.

The latter involves Mobility Card Users - who pay $50 annually for the privilege of having a card - being able to park for free in Whangarei.

The Whangarei District Council has floated the idea of users paying for the first hour and then being able to park as long as they like. A decision will be made next week on December 14.

The idea is part of a by-law review. Interestingly enough, the council has always had a bylaw provision to charge for mobility spaces, but has opted not to.

Probably because someone with some common sense decided that the financial take would be minimal and it was a dumb idea because it would annoy not just disabled or immobile people, but anyone else remotely endowed with a civic sense of justice.

Which begs the question why on earth the council is now considering charging this sector of our community parking?

There is no financial sense in the decision, the only vaguely related connection to economics is that the council bought themselves a large headache.

Which is why two weeks out from Christmas, I have a sense that common sense will prevail.
There is a saying that all it takes for evil to prevail is for good people to do nothing.

Sometimes, all it takes for common sense to prevail is for good people to do nothing as well.