Blind sisters 'not disabled enough' to qualify for parking permits
The parents of two blind sisters say they were denied parking permits for their vehicles because their daughters are “not disabled enough”.
Hailey and Chayd Brown, from Townsville, said their application for a permit was rejected despite sisters Arliyah, 7, and Mackenzie, 3, having oculocutaneous albinism and being classed as legally blind.
Their condition leaves them vision impaired and with pigment lacking in their hair, eyes and skin.
But because they can walk, the Department of Transport considers them able-bodied.
Ms Brown said not having a permit was a major safety hazard while navigating busy car parks both at school and shopping centres.
Speaking with Yahoo News Australia, she said manoeuvring through traffic was chaotic and stressful, especially given both girls also had photophobia – an extreme sensitivity to lights and the glare of the sun.
“The bright sun causes the girls to be unable to open their eyes and cry in pain, even with their hats and/or dark sunglasses. It is sometimes isn’t enough,” she said.
Ms Brown said she was in a constant state of reassuring the girls about the noise of cars and foot traffic around them, all while trying to keep them moving and keeping their five-year-old brother, Reagan, happy.
A regular shopping trip was challenging from start to finish she said, with the girl’s canes colliding with people’s feet, and them battling to navigate the plethora of slopes, steps, edges and uneven ground.
“In a school parking lot there are even more cars and even more foot traffic and that is probably one of the scariest places we have to go,” Ms Brown said.
“It is the biggest safety hazard and is so beyond scary for not only me as a parent, but for my daughters.”
Daughters have MP’s support
The mum explained she was not only fighting for her own family, but for other teenagers and adults with vision loss.
“Whilst I fully understand and agree that the parking permits are there for those who cannot walk, I also feel that they should be extended to those who also need them to remain safe,” Ms Brown said.
“I would never have any intention of taking a disabled parking space of someone who needed it more than we did, but all I am asking for is for some alignment with all the other states.”
Rules set by the Queensland Department of Transport and Main Roads state permits are handed to disabled people based on their walking ability.
“People with intellectual, psychiatric, cognitive and sensory impairments do not meet the eligibility criteria, unless they also have an impairment impacting their functional ability to walk,” a spokesperson told the Townsville Bulletin.
She added community uproar was being considered and the department was assessing potentially expanding the Australian Disability Parking Permit Scheme.
Ms Brown and her husband have gained the support of Hinchinbrook MP Nick Dametto who addressed parliament last week pleading their case.
“We’d like to see that people that are vision impaired have their disability noted... and one day qualify for a disabled parking ticket,” he said.
He urged Queensland align its laws with Victoria, Tasmania and New South Wales, where the vision impaired have access to disabled permits.
A Queensland Transport and Main Roads spokesperson said the department is “currently assessing the feasibility” of expanding the Australian Disability Parking Permit Scheme criteria to include people with vision impairment.
“We commissioned an independent consultant to undertake the review, which has involved consultation with community, government and disability sector stakeholders,” the spokesperson told Yahoo News Australia.
“Eligibility under the scheme is currently based on the applicant’s functional ability to walk.
“Therefore, people with intellectual, psychiatric, cognitive and sensory impairments do not meet the eligibility criteria, unless they also have an impairment impacting their functional ability to walk.”
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