Enforcement is due to begin this month following changes to Blue Badge parking in Thanet council car parks.
Previously, Blue Badge holders could park for an unlimited time but now parking must be paid for after three hours.
The change, which applies to all Thanet council ow3ned car parks, was agreed as part of the budget for 2025/26.
It means badge holders will still get three hours free parking but after this normal charges apply.
Thanet council says this brings the isle in line with other districts in Kent.
There’s no change to free on-street parking which is still unlimited for vehicles displaying a blue badge.
New signs will be displayed in car parks. Enforcement will start later this month, to allow for a transition period.
Blue Badge holders are statutorily permitted to park without payment:
- in ‘on-street’ pay and display bays;
- without time limit in limited waiting and residents/shared parking places;
- and subject to not causing obstruction for up to three hours on a yellow line.
Blue badges do not cover;
- Disabled Persons Vehicles – along with all other non-goods vehicles – are not permitted in goods vehicle Loading Bays
- Where there is a ban in loading / unloading indicated by kerb markings
- Taxi ranks
- Bus stops
- Where parking would cause an obstruction to traffic or pedestrians
- Other areas that are reserved for specific users such as reserved permit holder only bays
The Blue Badge disabled parking scheme is run by Kent County Council and allows vehicles with disabled and blind people to be parked closer to shops and amenities, allowing the holder to drive or be transported to areas where parking is restricted.
Can I suggest that you change the last paragraph so that it doesn’t read as if blind people are permitted to drive?
As a blue badge holder I totally agree, the idea for the blue badge was so the disabled had easier parking not free, I think the same should apply at the hospital
If I go to Westwood Cross parking is free, why should I pay again to use the hospital parking when I have already paid for it through tax and national insurance?
Seems reasonable enough to me, though one suspects our local hard-left campaigner will disagree.
The government has taken money away from my pension and heating allowance and as from April having to pay tax on my pension, now the local council wants my pension by making me pay for parking with a blue badge, being disabled going shopping etc takes longer so three hours is Mad ,l use to go to whitstable but had to stop because two hour free paking for blue badge holders isn’t long enough to get round shops and back .why is the pensioner having to pay extra money and have money taken away when we worked hard all our lives payed all the taxes to then be punished for it .
Aren’t disabled people’s disability benefits intended to cover additional costs arising from having a disability ? Wouldn’t parking charges (after 3 free hours) be covered ?
You can park, for free, onstreet.
Read the piece.
all these schemes are bothered about is raking in millions from people parking , in fact i think they prefer it if they can issue a fine , hospitals are no better , i wouldnt mind if it went back into the hospital , instead of greedy contruction firms like carrilion who used to run it .
I personally have never paid to park anywhere.
Not all people get disability benefits, because you have a blue badge it doesn’t go hand in hand .
I wish someone would tell my some of neighbours that they can only park, for 3 hours on Double lines with their Blue badges. As several of them park all the time, and cause obstruction.
That’s fair enough, blue badge holders think they own the streets and often park on yellow lines when there are ample parking spaces off the yellow lines they are not all legless.
As for the winter fuel allowance we no longer qualify for it. Yet our next door neighbours who have never done an official days work in their lives THEY get the winter fuel allowance as well of a whole range of other benefits, my wife and I receive our state pension and a work pension we paid into in our 55 years of working and paying tax, yet our pensions are tax.
Why should we have to pay tax to go to spongers like those who have fiddled the system for all of their lives and they even boast about it and show off telling us “ we have a little hideaway in Spain”
What a load of Baloney. One jealous of disabled persons Bill. Would you rather be disabled then? I’m pretty sure those who are would rather be mobile.
May I point out I am a full time worker not on benefits and have a blue badge due to pain condition!!!!
Kent resident. Disabled people are mobile they are given financial assistance to purchase nice cars and mobile scooters so they’re not stuck in one place but many of those who are said to be disabled abuse the system by allowing them to use their blue card to cause hazards to other road users by blue card holders parking in places and causing obstructions or danger to others.
Bill – given money for nice cars and mobile scooters! Get your facts right before passing silly comments. My wife and I pay for all her medical aids including power chair, scooter, mobility aids and our car. Those of you on benefits get everything free. My wife has a blue card as she has huge mobility problems. Have a nice day in your world!
one of the biggest scandals with the blue badge scheme is not committed by the disabled , but by all these people you see everywhere using family members or others badges , even for parking all day while they are at work , its blatant ! and one of the worst places for abuse is staff at the qeqm hospital , the amount of staff that have them ,the staff must be 50% disabled?
Get your facts right people the government have not robbed poor pensioners of their winter fuel allowance the government have stopped the winter fuel allowance to those pensioners who are far from poor and never should have received the allowance in the first the Conservatives wasted billions of £££££s of YOUR MONEY.
another council house tory by the sound of it ? and what has this to do with the blue badge scheme ?
There are not many good! things on offer if you’re disabled. Now there’s one less