Accessible Parking & The Main Entry

The ADA dictates that accessible parking be as close as possible to the main building entry.   The reason for this is obvious………..someone in a wheelchair may not have the strength and ability to travel long distances.  After all, you must remember that unless the wheelchair is motorized, as very few are, the disabled person must use their upper body strength to move from Point “A” to Point “B” and that can be quite difficult for those with disabilities. 

As I was out running errands, I took this picture of an accessible parking space as it caught my eye for being so far out of the way.  This accessible space has numerous issues, but one of the biggest is its location relative to the main entry of the facility that it serves.  This space appears to be in a secondary parking lot and will require someone in a wheelchair to transverse probably 150 feet of uneven paving to get to the main entry.   The location of this space is a BIG red flag to serial plaintiffs who are looking to file lawsuits against small business owners.   This space will catch their eye just as it did mine.

In addition to the location of the parking space, there are several other non-conforming issues.   It may be hard to fully appreciate from picture above; however, the parking stall and aisle are too small to meet the requirements of an accessible parking space.  In addition, the aisle is on the wrong side of the parking space.   Finally, the signage on the pole in front of the accessible space is too low and the emblem of a wheel chair on the pavement is located too far into the accessible space.  It should actually be located towards the outer end of the parking accessible space.