“Severe” fines for those who park in disabled spaces – Administrative fines in municipalities and regions

“It is the duty of all of us to shape human conditions so that the disabled are not excluded in their own cities, it is the duty of all of us. This is also an indicator of civilization, for all of us”, emphasized the Minister of Infrastructure and Transport, Kostas Ah. Karamanlis, responding to a topical question of ND MP Fotini Pipilis, with which she requested stricter provisions of the Road Traffic Code for offenders who park in disabled lanes.

For the first time there is one comprehensive plan for the disabled, which has been edited by Mr. Gerapetritis and each ministry is serious about their problems, as he noted the Minister of Infrastructure and Transport, and referring to his area of ​​responsibility informed the national delegation that the KOK reform plan is being completed and very soon the changes will be submitted to consultation. “We will do a serious consultation because what I would like to avoid is to legislate something that is not implemented. Many times the KOK is renewed, supposedly modernized and no one implements it”, said Mr. Karamanlis and added that the ministry is ready to listen to the proposals of the disabled.

ND Member of Parliament Fotini Pipili spoke about the difficult daily life of safe passage for the disabled due to the “unacceptable and chaotic situation on the sidewalks, in general in Greece and in particular in the limits of the Municipality of Athens”. “I came into contact with representatives of the blind and people with disabilities in wheelchairs,” said Ms. Pipili, and she pointed out that one of the first issues they raise is parking that obstructs the movement of people with disabilities on sidewalk guides or in access areas to the road. “They told me the feature, which I didn’t know, that the fine is only 20 euros. It is therefore necessary to tighten the provisions of the KOK. Also, the ministry should carry out audits and proceed with administrative and other measures to the municipalities, which build the sidewalks, because almost all wheelchair accesses are impossible given that the kennel of the sidewalk remains 8.10 points and in front is the asphalt punctured or anything else as a result of which no wheelchair in Athens can move freely, as we have an obligation to impose, as a state and as a government”, underlined the ND MP.

“What the ministry should do is to foresee that the driver will be punished and not the car. This is the basic philosophy of the KOK and I commit myself to this as wellthe fine for illegal parking on disabled ramps will be greatly increased and that from now on the government and the ministry will also see the case of administrative fines, not only in the municipalities but also in the regions which, unfortunately, do not cooperate as they should”said the Minister of Infrastructure and Transport, noting that the phenomena of corruption revealed in the examination process for driver’s licenses, have to do with the inability of the transport Directorates of the regions, in essence, to implement the law and because this “has become problematic”, it must to impose administrative fines.

In relation to routing and access to the sidewalks, Mr. Karamanlis noted that the municipality must also bend over these problems, because the current situation on the streets of the Municipality of Athens is “third-world”, because “not only does it not facilitate the safe movement of people with disabilities, but it also creates obstacles for them”.

The minister emphasized that the ministry:

• He has granted parking tickets to the cars of parents or children, as well as spouses with disabilities. Accessibility to the metro and tram has been improved and interventions are being made where there are problems.
• The new buses have much better access.
• A special committee was established in the ministry, which deals daily with the issues of accessibility for the disabled.
• The establishment of private driving assessment and preparation centers for people with mobility problems has been foreseen, in order to facilitate disabled citizens who can get a driving license.

“It is the state that should, until the last moment, be very strict with the agencies because we legislate in the Parliament and then the control mechanisms of each agency, the administration is unable not only to implement the law but many times it participates in a small and larger degree and in the party of corruption”, commented Ms. Pipili and added that there is a “ridiculous irresponsibility” in the face of the problem.

The MP filed in the minutes of the meeting photographic material with the blind man’s desperate attempt to pass the route guide, where there are either parked cars or they find in front of them table seats or a booth or “baro seat” or cages, etc. “In recent years, the Municipality of Athens has placed raised guides, so that it is possible for wheelchairs to go down the street. In front of the frame on Nikis Street is ten centimeters of the sidewalk kennel. In Herodos Attikos and Vasilissas Sofias, the kennel is seven centimeters,” said Mrs. Pipili, who requested that there be guides for the blind also in the squares, which they do not visit in order not to fall, in contrast to the sidewalk where they can find support . The MP also asked for a thorough check on all metro lines, because there are not everywhere guides for the blind and because measures must be taken especially on the platforms.

“You are right that the fine should be increased and the fine will be increased for illegal parking in a blind lane or on a disabled ramp”, replied the Minister of Infrastructure and Transport, who underlined that such phenomena do not honor either the city or the country. However, as he noted, no matter how strict the legislation becomes, the question is who will implement it. In this climate, Mr. Karamanlis stated that “both the Municipal Police and the Traffic Police must start cooperating, especially in the issues of the disabled”.

The Minister of Infrastructure and Transport also informed the MP that in the context of reforming the KOK and in relation to the sound signals at the traffic lights which help a lot especially the blind, the region should impose them. In relation to Lines 2 and 3 of the metro, he said that accessibility is “fairly satisfactory”, Line 1 is “problematic”, not only for the disabled but in general for all passengers, and lately there has been a huge effort to improve it. In any case, he pledged that the issue of road guides, where they do not exist, will be examined in cooperation with STASY.

RES-EMP

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