If you’ve ever driven with a grandparent or person with mobility issues and gotten to the grocery store only to find someone parked in the accessible stall without a decal, you will know first-hand that it is a frustrating, anger-inducing experience.
Now, the Resort Municipality of Whistler (RMOW) is looking to crack down on such instances.
To discourage people from parking in accessible spots, the RMOW is advancing bylaw amendments that will increase the fines for parking in accessible parking stalls to the maximum allowable amount municipalities can fine for bylaw infractions.
This bylaw amendment will raise the maximum fine from $150 to $500 ($300 if paid within two weeks).
Councillor Jen Ford proposed the amendment at the Sept. 20 council meeting, citing what she had heard from the RMOW's accessibility committee.
“They are few and far between, and when you need those stalls available, you want them there. Parking in those stalls, if you do not have a decal, is unacceptable,” Ford said.
“As the appointee to the accessibility and inclusion committee, I wanted to share that this is something we talk about at almost every meeting, the availability and accessibility of our accessible parking spaces. It serves our community well to take these offences seriously.”
According to the RMOW, 39 tickets were issued for people parking in accessible spots last year, representing a small fraction of the 17,516 tickets issued for parking violations in 2021.
In addition to the fine increase for accessible parking violations, the bylaw amendment will also increase the fine for parking in taxi stalls, from a maximum fine of $100 to $200 ($70 if paid within two weeks).
The fee for commercial parking decals will also increase for Whistler’s businesses, going from $30 to $40 per vehicle up to a maximum processing fee of $400.
Commercial parking decals will remain free after 10 commercial parking decals for that business, as is the current process. This fee was last updated in the early 2000s when the RMOW created the Commercial Decal Program.
The bylaw amendments also update the section on advertising and marketing on the road to clarify that displaying a sign or using a vehicle to advertise a business or service, or selling or distributing goods or providing a service, including selling flowers, fruit, vegetables or seafood from a vehicle, is not allowed.
Parking fines are expected to generate about $400,000 in revenue in 2022. The fee increase for the commercial decals and parking fines is estimated to create an additional $80,000 in revenue in 2023.
If you want to learn more about getting an accessible stall decal, you can find more information at sparc.bc.ca/parking-permits/.
