A blue badge holder who often watches football at Ta’ Qali is being forced to choose between parking on double yellow lines and risk being fined or miss part of the match.

The 45-year-old football fan told this newspaper that although there were parking spots available for people with a disability at the National Stadium these were usually occupied by people who did not have a blue badge.

He has been following matches at stadia for the past 15 years and feels parking abuse is getting worse.

The supporter, who goes to Ta’ Qali at least every fortnight but at times even every week, said that seven out of 10 times the reserved parking spots were occupied by unauthorised motorists.

He suggested that the Malta Football Association install signs showing the fine that abusers would face in the hope that this would act as a deterrent.

He also thinks that one of the several police officers stationed at the stadium could keep an eye on the reserved parking spots before the matches, making sure they are only used by blue badge holders.

The man, who has mobility difficulties, sometimes has no other option but to park illegally on double yellow lines within walking distance from the entrance because he cannot cover long distances on foot.

MFA looking into ways to ensure such slots were used solely by disabled people

There were also occasions when he has had to wait for motorists to move their car from the slots reserved to blue badge holders, thus missing the opening minutes of the game.

He noted that parking issues were not restricted to Ta’ Qali because elsewhere he had even been told not to park in such reserved parking places to leave room for TV crews.

When contacted, the Commissioner for the Rights of Persons with a Disability, Oliver Scicluna, said they were aware of the situation and had been in touch with the Malta Football Association several times.

In 2013, the commission had filed a judicial protest against the Malta FA for failing to provide adequate access to the National Stadium’s enclosure side. A court case is ongoing.

MFA communications director Kevin Azzopardi told this newspaper they knew of the parking issue and the association was doing its utmost to solve the problem, which was also raised by disability access officer Peter Busuttil.

He confirmed that there were parking bays within the enclosure car park that were reserved for people with a disability but which “were occupied by irresponsible drivers” on some occasions.

The MFA was looking into ways to ensure such slots were used solely by people with a disability.

The appointment of Mr Busuttil as disability access officer underlined the MFA’s willingness to improve facilities for disabled fans and address accessibility issues at local football stadia, Mr Azzopardi said.

He added that such a commitment was further highlighted last month when the MFA hosted two high-ranking officials from the Centre for Access to Football in Europe, a Uefa corporate social responsibility associate partner.

Lack of respect towards blue badge holders translates into a regular struggle for some.

Only last Friday, a woman with walking difficulties turned up for work in Valletta only to find that a car without a blue badge was partly parked on a reserved parking spot close to her workplace. There was not enough space to park her car and no other parking spots were available in the vicinity.

Once located, the owner of the irregularly-parked car turned up to remove his vehicle. However, he refused, insisting he was forced to park that way because of the way other motorists had parked, insisting that “a bus could fit in the available space”.

When three police officers showed up, they noted that the woman could not fit her car in the available space and contacted the owners of the other vehicles to move slightly so use the reserved parking slot.

The woman in question said motorists should bear in mind the needs of fellow drivers with walking difficulties and not to use parking spots reserved for blue badge holders.

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