Alice-Mary Higgins (Independent) | Oireachtas source

I want to speak in support of Senator Boyhan's amendment. I will pick up on a couple of points the Minister made. His position needs re-evaluation. He mentioned that the penalty point system is designed to tackle dangerous driving. He said the parking offence is dangerous parking. The Minister described dangerous parking as parking that is a danger to vehicles. Dangerous parking is parking that is a danger to road users and should be construed as such. Dangerous driving is not solely about the car. It is matter of road users and how cars are used in the proper way. It is also about other drivers. One of the requirements to pass a driving test is that people show appropriate consideration for other drivers and other road users.

It is not simply inconvenient, as it was framed, if a disability space has been wrongly occupied by a car that does not need one. It is dangerous for a driver with a disability who may not be able to access a safe parking space as a result and who may have real physical difficulties as a consequence. It is not inconvenient; it is dangerous. Disability parking is not a perk or compensation that we give to people with disabilities. Disability parking is a road safety measure and a driving safety measure.

In this sense, Senator Boyhan's proposal fits appropriately in the penalty system and should be considered part of regulating against dangerous driving. Frankly, persons who repeatedly engage in such behaviour show themselves to be reckless in respect of other road users and other drivers on the road. In this context it is appropriate. It is not simply about penalising them. For the general safety of our roads this behaviour should be identified and tackled with the accumulation of points. I urge re-evaluation of what we are looking at when we consider dangerous driving. If dangerous parking is already there, this is another form of it.