Parents with Prams

[XRchic]

The reason I dont park in disabled car parks is not because it is illegal and I fear a fine or something. The reason is because I actually respect the needs of a disabled driver to park there, something more to do with common courtesy, understanding, respect and a recognition that some people need an extra help with things like driving, shopping etc. The fact that I may get a fine for doing so, has no impact on me in that regard and Im sure that applies to most people out there.

The same SHOULD apply to PwP parks. The fact that it is not illegal should have nothing to do with why you do or do not park in the spaces for them. If you applied that theory across your entire life, then you might find yourself to be a very self centred, intolerant and unhelpful person in a big way.

As for the actual mechanics of shopping with kids and babies, you (the initial poster) either clearly have no idea (having no kids is no reason for you to have no idea - plenty of people without kids are more considerate than you, clearly it is YOU) OR you are making your first post in these forums as a means of stirring everyone on here, which is unwise and will cease your forums life rather abruptly - that is your choice.

If you have a newborn/small baby (which I do have currently - a two week old son) and/or other kids (I have an 8 year old and a 12 year old), you will know the real difficulties faced in getting them out. Try and get a baby capsule in and out of the centre seat in a car and manouvre it out of a car in a regular spaced car park without hitting another car with your door. You basically need the car door to be as wide open as possible to get it out, otherwise it is very difficult. Capsules are a nightmare at the best of times. Even if you want to unstrap the baby and take it out of the capsule in the car, you still need the room, and it is VERY helpful if it is raining to have room to have the pram sitting near the car door so you can put the baby in quickly without the baby getting wet.

Toddlers still need to be strapped in their car seats so the same applies, especially if you have more than one child. With children older than this, the issues disappear and you dont need the car park.

The reason why those parks are closer to the shopping centre, is because many parents put their babies in the shopping trolleys with the small baby seats in them, to save pushing a stroller/pram as well as a trolley in the supermarket. What this means is that you will take the baby out and have to carry it in to the shops. The weather can often be really hot or really cold and wet, so the baby will get wet and cold/hot depending on how far you have to carry it into the shops, and secondly, even large newborns can be heavy and actually carrying a baby, with their gear (baby bag, bottles, blanket etc) can be quite hard, especially if you are racing off chasing after your other kids who are heading off towards the supermarket, running in front of cars.

Im sure that the shopping centre managers had taken all of this into consideration when deciding to provide such parks for people with small children and babies, possibly due to requests for such parks, or perhaps out plain courtesy to customers. However, it seems they have more cosideration than people like you do who park in the parks (for those who park there accidentally, or if there are no other parks or whatever, then I dont have the same problems - it is those who deliberately park there).

Genghis mate, let me know where you work. I hope you work near a shopping centre. And I hope you have a reserved car park in your name, coz I am going to come and park there. It is a public park (on private property, but trespass is not the issue here and the owners of your business would own the car park to the same degree that say, Coles, would) and there is no law saying I cannot park there, so I will just park in your reserved car park! I dont see any disadvantage for you if I park there, and whats more, I dont care.

In all seriousness mate, grow a brain and dont post rubbish like that on here - I dont really think that you would be so inconsiderate - I think the post is just stir.

If you were posting with genuine comments, then karma will get you my friend.