14 places you shouldn't park even if you have a Blue Badge
The Blue Badge scheme lets drivers or passengers with certain medical conditions or disabilities park closer to where they are going. But the Blue Badge is not a licence to park anywhere and like other road users anyone with a Blue Badge needs to obey the rules of the road.
While Blue Badges do allow the driver to park where other vehicles aren’t normally allowed to, that doesn’t mean you can park anywhere you want, any time. And parking bylaws do vary in different local authorities, so it’s a good idea to check first if you don’t know the area.
It’s important to know the Blue Badge scheme doesn’t apply on private roads or in off-street car parks. But some operators may provide spaces for people with impairments so you should check the signs for concessions and whether badge holders have to pay.
Read next: Full list of everyone who automatically qualifies for a parking Blue Badge
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Welsh Government guidelines on where you shouldn't park:
Places where a ban on loading or unloading is in force, normally indicated by yellow marks on the kerb. Roadside signs display times of operation for loading bays
Parking places reserved for specific users such as resident’s bays, permit holders or loading bays. (Always check whether a particular local authority has chosen to exempt Blue Badge holders from these restrictions)
Pedestrian zones unless Blue Badge holders are exempt (check signs)
Pedestrian crossings (zebra, pelican, toucan and puffin crossings), including areas marked by zig-zag lines
Clearways (no stopping)
A bus stop clearway during its hours of operation
An urban clearway within its hours of operation
School ‘keep clear’ markings during the hours shown on a yellow no-stopping plate
Other ‘keep clear’ markings where you must not park at any time e.g. where emergency vehicles require access, vehicles such as doctors, taxis and other emergency vehicles
Bus, tram or cycle lanes or cycle tracks. Badge holders are not entitled to drive in bus lanes during their hours of operation
Where there are double white lines in the centre of the road (even if one of the lines is broken)
Suspended meter bays or when use of the meter is not allowed
Where temporary parking restrictions are in force, as shown for example by no-waiting cones
Across dropped kerbs whether or not they are indicated by ‘H’ bar markings.
People with Blue Badges must also not park where it would endanger, inconvenience or obstruct pedestrians or other road users. This means not parking on pavements that cause obstruction to pedestrians.
Other dangerous or obstructive parking includes:
School entrances, bus stops, on a bend, or near the brow of a hill or hump bridge
Parking opposite or within 10 meters (32 feet) of a junction, except in an authorised parking space
Where it would make the road narrow, such as by a traffic island or roadworks
Where it would hold up traffic, such as in narrow stretches of road or blocking vehicle entrances
Where emergency vehicles stop or go in and out, such as hospital entrances
Where the kerb has been lowered or the road raised
On a pavement, unless signs permit it.
You cannot be clamped
You cannot legally be wheel-clamped on the public highway (‘on-street’) for parking offences, provided you correctly display a valid Blue Badge according to the rules of the scheme. Parking in forbidden areas or where it would endanger or obstruct other road users is an offence, which could result in you receiving a parking fine. You could also be prosecuted, have your car towed away and the badge withdrawn.