Rethink design of parking stickers

I REFER to the letter “Mean drivers take up OKU bays” (The Star, March 5), particularly the sentence: “I noticed many elderly folks who are still able to walk, displaying storebought stickers in their cars.” A distinction needs to be made between disabled people who are still able to drive a car and those who cannot drive a regular vehicle and thus need a wheelchair and the assistance of another “able” person in order to get around.

Technology can do a lot these days to improve the mobility and general ability of a disabled person. A car, for example, can be modified and have special features installed to allow a disabled person to drive and park in normal conditions. This is the kind of driver who must be certified by the relevant medical authorities and subsequently get a sticker from the Road Transport Department because he/ she will always be the driver and therefore will always need to park in a parking bay reserved for the disabled.

However, there are many other disabled people who are wheelchair-bound and will probably never be able to drive a car. These people need the assistance of another able person when they want to go anywhere out of the house. Thus, a wheelchair will need to be put in the car, and the person will usually also need help getting in and out of the car. The disabled person will only be a passenger in the car, not the driver.

In this situation, it is not wrong if the driver buys a “Disabled” sticker and displays it on the car windscreen at the time when he/she is carrying the disabled person in the car. This is an occasional benefit meant to promote the safety of the wheelchair user and his/her carer.

It should also be noted that the design of the present sticker favours wheelchair users. If the sticker was meant for disabled people who are authorised to drive a car, then the image of a steering wheel should be added to make it clear that the reserved parking bay is only for disabled drivers.

I should say that wheelchair users and their carers have a better right to these facilities if priority must be applied.

MARISA DEMORI Putrajaya