Arizona / West

Bill seeks to add disabled parking

A state senator is working to give the 10 percent of motorists who are disabled 15 percent of the parking spaces in Arizona. Republican Sen. Slade Mead's proposed law would set aside one on-street parking place out of every seven for vehicles driven by those who are disabled. If approved by the Legislature, the law would impose similar requirements on publicly run parking lots. Mead said the idea, which came from a constituent, is designed to ensure that people who are disabled have sufficient places to park. His proposal, SB 1047, also requires that a third of those spaces be set aside for those who use wheelchairs. The mandate far outstrips what cities already require in parking lots for commercial malls and apartment complexes. Most cities follow a guideline that requires one handicapped space for every 25 regular parking spaces. Figures from the state Department of Motor Vehicles show that the number of people with special plates or placards showing they are disabled is about 10 percent of all licensed vehicles in the state. "Arizona has a high elderly population," said Mead, of Phoenix. "The people who need those parking spaces are plentiful." As to annoying other constituents, Mead said he'd rather make them unhappy than have someone who needs a disabled parking place not get one. And he said that's especially true of those in wheelchairs.