A disabled Aberdeen mum says she feels like she is being forced out of her home by people parking illegally outside her house.
Kelly Ross has a complex medical condition which means she struggles to walk unaided for any length of time.
This means if she is unable to park close to her house, she feels stranded in her car.
While there is a space right outside her house, she says people without blue badges frequently move into the disabled space as soon as Kelly pulls out.
The 47-year-old mum of one says she is now practically housebound as she faces a daily struggle to park outside her home in Rona Place.
She says the council, the factor Grampian Housing Association, and her own housing association, Castlehill, are all unable to help.
She says the situation is so extreme she feels she will need to move out of her home of 10 years to have a house with an allocated space.
Disabled parking space is not allocated to one driver
Rules which were once in place allowing her to have her own space in Rona Place have since changed and disabled spaces are now open to anyone with a blue badge to park in.
Kelly said she felt that was fair, however, struggles with people who use it without a blue badge or a disabled passenger with them.
Things have got so bad that Kelly’s teenage son has even offered to carry his mum to the house when they can not park near it.
Kelly, who uses crutches to walk, said she is at “breaking point”.
She said: “I am coming to The Press and Journal because I feel like I have exhausted every other avenue.
“I have the police and the community wardens telling me that I need an allocated space – but when I approached Aberdeen City Council or the factor or my housing association they tell me there is nothing they can do.”
Kelly describes a situation where she now feels she can not leave her house for fear she won’t get back into the car space and be left stranded in her car.
Aberdeen City Council has said there is nothing it can do
She said: “I have CCTV in my house for security and one of them picks up the parking place. I can see that as soon as I pull out of the space – someone else pulls in.”
Around 100 people in houses surrounding the area.
“The thing is, I think that sometimes people are seeing me move and are deliberately moving into the space. I have watched it happen for so long now – I don’t know what else to do.”
The official bodies who deal with parking, she says, are at a loss about what to do. The council has no jurisdiction because the land the car is parked on is not an adopted road.
She said: “So, I don’t know what to do next. It is just incredibly unfair that this is happening.”
An Aberdeen City Council spokeswoman said: “If someone has a blue badge, they might be eligible to apply for a parking space closer to their residence.
“Full details and how to apply are available on the council website.”
We have asked Castlehill Housing Association and Grampian Housing Association if they will consider allocating a parking space to Kelly.
Who is entitled to a blue badge?
According to The Scottish Government, the Blue Badge Scheme is designed to help disabled people who have severe mobility problems lead independent lives by knowing that when they reach a destination, either as a driver or passenger, they will be able to park near a venue and therefore have easier access to the services they want to use.
It isn’t to provide free parking.
The blue badge parking concessions only allow badge holders to park on-street. They
don’t apply to off-street privately operated car parks, such as supermarket car parks or
on privately owned roads, such as those you find at airports.