One of our markets does this, and while I don't mind, the parking lot itself is too small with too many handicap spaces. In the winter it is hard to walk with the snow/ice and uneven paving and very difficult to part as it straigh in, instead of angle.

We have those signs too.

I've often thought that the handicapped accessibility area could be better designed for flow of the store and parking lot.

publix in south and central FL have a similiar parking space sign w/o the infant part. i can't tell you how many times DH tells me to pull in there and he'll pretend he is expecting lol...of course i refuse, mostly because i do not want anyone thinking i'm having a kid cuz i never would lol! i always park far away to get in a walk and avoid idiots parking near me, dinking my car. luckily we don't get snow or ice! ~ liz

We have a few stores with similiar signs for pregnant women but I haven't seen one for infants.
It gets abused just as badly as any other "designated" space however.
I'm awful but I can't help but shake my head and make comments to myself when I see a man pull into the pregnant woman space and saunter right on in (and no, usually he's not there picking up his Pregnant wife..he's just parking close. *sigh*)

We have some of those signs around here too. I don't know why a pregnant mother or one with a baby should get special treatment but I do hate to see people use the handicap space just because they have a placard. I also being one who recently had my hip replaced, have good days and bad days. I don't use it unless I really need it.

Several years ago family members were hurt, and I had to lift a heavy wheel chair in and out of the back of my car up to 8 times a day. I can tell you, I sure hated to see all the handicapped spaces filled when I could have really used one.

I also know someone who has used a handicap placard that belonged to her husband (who died last year) just because it's easier to park, and that's illegal.

A lot of stores have had those spaces for years. They usually say mothers with young children, though, not infants per se. They're just 'courtesy' spaces--it's NOT illegal to park in them if you're not pregnant nor have young children.

I have no problem with handicapped spaces, but I do think it's going a bit far to reserve spaces for women who are in the prime of their lives, and are as healthy as they're ever likely to be. If they're having a problem pregnancy, they could get a handicapped placard, of course, so I don't see the need for reserved parking. There are stores I avoid because by the time I drive past a half dozen handicapped spaces, and a few more reserved for young moms, I have to park in the boondocks. I'm not actually handicapped, but I'm 59, have arthritis, heel spurs and plantar fasciitis--among other things--and some days, it's just too much to have to hobble in from the back of the parking lot.

Of course, the real reason for the spots is preferential treatment for the customers who spend the most--families with young children do a LOT of spending. More than we seniors do, so we don't get the reserved spots in the parking lot.

That sign has been around here for a few years now.

It is nice as they are near the cart returns. Moms can strap their kids into the car seat and return the buggy without going far.

Pregnancy is not a disability. It is a condition of choice. Rarely, if ever, would a disabling condition be a choice for someone.

Don't judge someone with a handicapped placard/license plates just because they're not in a wheelchair or on crutches, etc. There are many conditions that may not have an outward appearance that would warrant a placard, such as pulmonary problems.

NatesGram, how would parking in a designated handicapped space have made it any easier to lift a heavy wheelchair in/out of the trunk of your car? And if you can get close enough to your friend's placard to write down the number, you can notify your local DMV that the person to whom it was issued has died....

I have a handicap card displaying on my visor.

Hate it when those misuse!

I park in the "reserved for pregnant women, etc" all the time. I would never park in a place for the disabled.

Pregnancy and having small children is a choice. The store may suggest that they want to reserve those places, but I'm under no obligation to honor that. It is not a law.

I'm not disabled enough to qualify for a placard, thank goodness, but if the arthritis is acting up, I bloody well park as close as I can. I had my child in my 30's, and I carried him when necessary, and didn't feel the need of a special parking place.

I have never seen that sign for pregnant ladies and infants.

My dad is now in a wheelchair most of the time and it really helps to have that placard for the handicap space so that mother doesn't have to push him so far to get inside the building.

Lindsay you are right, the wheelchair wasn't really heavier because I wasn't able to find a handicapped spot. My baby grandson was in Loma Linda, my son-in-law at another hospital and my daughter (using the wheelchair) and I were staying at Ronald McDonald's House. I was constantly running DD back and forth and the problem after getting the wheelchair out was walking/pushing so far from a parking spot to each hospital. By the end of the day that wheelchair felt like a thousand pounds.

And I agree, you can't judge a person's handicap.

I don't believe we have those Pregger spaces here.

The idea of handicap spaces started out as a good thing, but like so many good things, it is abused. I think it is too easy to get a HC tag. I expect if I asked I could get one, because of some physical problems, but I don't want one. I do my own housework, walk when the weather is good, spend an hour or so in Kroger or WalMart once a week. I am not handicapped, even though the pain is sometimes near to unbearable.

I would feel guilty using a HC parking place, although it would be a great help.

Sue

The only place I have seen those spots is at the local Babies-R-Us stores and I figure that I will honor it since it is a baby store.

NatesGram - One thing you might consider doing if there aren't any available handicapped parking spaces would be to pull up near the entrance, stop the car, and then get the wheelchair and your daughter out. Your daughter can then just sit there in the chair while you go park the car. Then, when you have to push her from the spot where she's waiting, you won't have as long a distance to push...

Sign my name to Azzalea's post.

I have always felt the same way. Pregnancy and parenthood are not disabilities.

Around here I have also seen spaces marked "family" parking. I am part of a family so I park there.

I've been seeing those signs around here for years.

I am handicapped. I use handicapped spaces legally. I also use the spaces at the new shopping plaza here that have a sign saying "Reserved for Fuel Efficient Autos"! My van is not 'fuel efficient' but the 4 so designated spaces are closer than the handicapped spaces to the cut out in the sidewalk and the store doors by a good 50 feet. Someone please explain to me why a "fuel efficient" driver should have that privlege.

I reluctantly got a handicap permit after knee surgery, but if the ground is dry, I don't need it and can do the walk. I've never seen the sign for pregnant women, but think that is a bit over-kill.

My mom has a handicap license plate. I do all her driving. It really p***** me off to find cars parked in the handicap spaces with no handicap sign in there car. I've gone to customer service to report this more than once. They said there's nothing they can do if someone chooses to park there. So, I'll park where there is room enough to park without getting hit.
Leslie

Lindsey, that all happened about 7 years ago. They now how a converted van w/ramp, etc...

I currently have my own handicap permit but I won't use it unless I absolutely have to (good days and bad days). I try to leave spaces in case there is someone needing it like I did years ago. Unfortunately, I see a lot of people run in and run out.

Let me preface this by saying that I firmly support handicapped parking spaces and can't help but feel that cars illegally parked in them should be automatically vaporised.
But, I am surprised at the almost hostility expressed towards the concept of reserved parking for pregnant mothers and parents of small children (it's called "pram parking" here). Yes, pregnancy and parenthood are choices, but especially in late pregnancy many women aren't quite as mobile as they might be, and riding herd on toddlers in a busy car park can be a very nerve-wracking experience.
My pregnancy days are long over and my baby is all grown up, but I have no problem with giving the parents of the next generation a little extra help.

Our local publix store has signs for "senior parking". They have taken an entire area that faces the front of the store and have handicap spaces on one side and senior on the other.

Sign me to colleenoz. Lighten up people! Too bad they don't ticket folks who can't follow the rules.

I've done a little of that wheelchair duty too. My MIL had cripling RA for 20 years. As the only 'help' available, I'd take her to her medical appointments, shopping, whatever. Fortunately, MIL was not heavy, and I was still young and strong, but it does require a lot of effort. You have to drag the chair out of the trunk, support/lift the individual into the chair, wheel it whatever distance over whatever terrain in whatever weather. I'd come home as exhausted as she was!

Lindsey, we don't all live in sunny climes! LOL You can't often leave a car unattended at the curb while you wheel Grandma out of the weather into shelter, then go park at some distance, return, and repeat in reverse when you depart. There's valet parking now at hospitals, but that's still unusual at medical offices or stores.

I've had a handicapped placard twice, for about a month after each hip surgery. I may need one again someday if my lung capacity continues to decrease -- an 'invisible' handicap.

Glenda -- I wouldn't have guessed that you had a handicap. Thought of you as "Galavanting Glenda", bustling off on trips and cruises. LOL

Right now I feel fortunate that I'm able to walk some distance and would never use a handicapped-designated parking space. It's no skin off my hide to leave closer spaces for women with babies (with them or within them). I've wrestled strollers through the ice and snow myself. It's just a courtesy, like holding a door for someone who can use a little help.

Wow...I guess I'm way outnumbered on this one! I think it's a great idea to have the designated spaces for moms with little ones. My son and DIL have a 2 year old and a 3 year old. It's a major production to take them out and get them strollered up. I certainly appreciated having those spaces available when I take the children out. My husband is disabled and has a handicapped placard that he only uses once in a blue moon. In my opinion, there are way too many people that have the placards! I have seen so many people with the placards that are perfectly capable of parking in a regular space and walking into a store. And...I don't think stores are catering to people with little ones just because they may be spending more. I think of it as a courtesy!!!

I like the senior parking hallngarden mentioned. My mom has too much pride for a handicap placard. But, I think she would use the senior parking.

Pride goeth before a fall. LOL

I agree with colleenoz. I would gladly give up a closer parking space for a pregnant woman or a parent with a small child, just like I would give up my seat on the bus for them so they have somewhere to sit. So what if it's a choice, it's making someone's life easier who has more difficulty getting around than I do.

I feel like saying it's a choice is like saying to a disabled person that they didn't have to smoke cigarettes so now they can't breathe, or they didn't have to sign up to serve the country and therefore got injured, or they didn't have to do manual labor which caused them an injury. I don't really think it matters what caused a person to have more difficulty getting around (by choice or not), the point is that it doesn't take anything from me to walk a little farther to make somebody else's life a little bit easier.

When I was PG I rarely used those spots because I felt guilty-there was nothing 'wrong' with me. My best friend was miserable when she was PG and could barely walk at times due to hemmoroids. Each situation is different. I leave those spots for the people who need them. Its common courtesy. I have no problem with them being for people with infants either. Carrying a baby in a carseat can get heavy-especially if you are sore. Some people have an infant and a 2-3 year old-I can walk an extra 30 feet so they have an easier time. My theory on any reserved spots-at least I don't need them, and I am thankful!

ack! I can't believe I'm saying this, but i agree with Jenn! LOL

We have had those kind of parking places at Kroger in Anderson for some years, but I don't think it says infants, but small children. Doesn't bother me any. I too have a handicapped placard and use it, having a bad back and bad knees I need to be close to the door as I can.
What does bother me is at the end of the aisle, next to the first handicapped spot are blue diagonal lines, it never fails someone parks on those! Those are not parking spots for man nor beast.

Sue

disagree with the pregnant space. When I was pregnant my doc told me walking was the best thing for me, and for an easier labor.

Did I mention that is the first time I've seen anything but a handicap sign or police only sign

"It's just a courtesy, like holding a door for someone who can use a little help."

I hope none of you, pregnant or otherwise, ever has to wrestle a toddler or a baby into the stroller on an August day in Texas.

but if you do, I hope no one tells you that walking is good for you.

Being as I am pregnant and have a toddler, I appreciate the reserved spots. My back is killing me and it's hard to carry Brody when he doesn't want to walk through the parking lot.

I usually park as far from the door as I can to get exercise, but I do appreciate the reserved spaces especially in icy snowy weather where I could risk slipping and falling.

and don't jump to conclusions if you don't see the placard hanging from the mirror or on the visor...if you have a handicapped designated license plate you can park without using the hanging placard.

You are not outnumbered, Ann, I didn't have the time to assemble thoughts about it. One of my BFFs daughter was carrying triplets, she needed those closer parking places. And now with the triplets 'on the ground' she REALLY needs them. Ahd as stated, not everyone lives in a temperate climate, tho truly I don't think that matters, wrestling with packages and little one(s) is simply not easy.

At first I wasn't going to respond because I was really saddened by the lack of compassion to most of the posts. Glad I saw Colleen & a few others! I would gladly walk in the snowy cold to help out an expectant mom or one with a few kids in tow.

Wow--I should come over here more often! (I spend most of my GW time over on HomeDec discussions and conversations...)

When I used to see some not-so-clearly-handicapped folks park in a handicapped spot, I would wonder why they thought they were entitled to it. But I then concluded that all is not what meets the eye; you just never know what that seemingly healthy person is going through in his/her life. There but for the grace of God ...

When it comes to spaces for pregnant women, I don't judge whether they need them or not; all I know is that I'm not about to put myself through a pregnancy in this lifetime (watched too many movies, I guess!), so I am more than happy to cut them a break!

I think some people who are parents just forget what it was like at times...

I don't quite understand why a trip to the store has to be a family outing. Father AND mother have to go and bring the kids, so they can put the kids in separate carts, leave the carts in the center of the aisles and then stand one on each side to block it off for everyone else? To say nothing of the screaming, the arguing (no, we have candy at home... you don't want that do you? Do you need a time out? bla, bla, bla) Why not one of them stay home, or in the car with the kids while the other one goes in, gets what they need more efficiently and get out?

We've had those signs around here and I just shake my head. More people looking for special treatment. If they don't get a special discount, they want special parking, or a special loan or whatever. Gimme, gimme, gimme. The only thing more laughable is handicapped parking at a home improvement store. JUST ONCE, let me see someone in a wheelchair come out of there toting a 12' sheet of drywall!

And I have far more physical limitations than most of the people that I see parked in these "handicapped" spots and no, I don't have a cripple card or plate. (I imagine someone would be totally offended if I called it what it's known as around here.)

And around here you can call the police and they'll issue a $200 ticket to someone parked without the handicapped plate or card. The plates aren't given out as freely anymore, which is good. They were so misused. At least the cards technically expire, though seldom is it enforced.

Also, technically, around here someone parked in a courtesy spot could be towed. Since it's private property, the property owner can have "unauthorized" vehicles towed off their property. Doubtful that they'd ever do that, but if someone got ornery enough, they could.

I give credit to some good friends of mine. He's in his 80s and is in a wheelchair and she's in her 50s. They don't often use handicapped spots. Like they said, he's riding anyway and enjoys the fresh air. More people could learn a lesson there. Naturally in inclement weather they will use the handicapped spots, but also very often he will stay in the vehicle. He doesn't have to go in.

At least father and mother are doing the grocery shopping nowdays! Back when my kids were little, it was the mother's *job* (even tho this mom had a full-time job already) to both pick up the kids from the sitter, AND do any shopping needed. Father's didn't step foot into a grocery store unless it was to pick up a 6-pack of beer.

I work at a large business campus area. For my building, which houses 700 employees: we have six handicapped spaces right at the building entrance, and drivers must get there typically by 7 a.m. to be early enough to get to use them. There's another 15 or 20 handicapped spots located on the ground floor of each parking garage, the nearest of which is about 1/4-mile away plus maybe 10 mother-to-be spots (also on the ground floor). We also have 20 reserved *green* spaces for carpoolers which I see abused regularly by single drivers.

I don't begrudge the pregnant spots for any mom-to-be. They don't need to be toting laptops, bags with business papers for their work-at-home days, lunch bags, etc., any further than necessary. Yes, pregnancy is a CHOICE ... but without it, we have no next generation.

But there is a little spot in the back of my mind that says TYPICALLY they should be used by third trimester women FIRST ... when it's really hard to get around, and you're not as flexible as someone who isn't carrying a 25-lb bowling ball in their middle. Obviously there are exceptions in the case of women who are in a high-risk pregnancy or something, but just saying ... TYPICALLY.

Well, cynic, do handicapped people not need smaller items like taps, washers, toilet seats, doorknobs, etc? What if one would like to go in and personally select larger items and arrange for their delivery so another person can install them on their behalf?
As to the courtesy spaces, rather than their being demanded by "people looking for special treatment", I suspect they are more the idea of shopping centre management who feel that making access easier for people who may have a few more problems getting from the car to the store than the average person, would make their shopping centre more attractive to those customers than the one down the road which doesn't. A trip to the store doesn't HAVE to be a family outing but there are some family groups, like single parent families, or families which are temporarily single-parent due for instance to the other parent being deployed overseas, who have no choice about going together.

cynic -- Sorry you must witness normal family life with your own eyes, and right inside your grocery store too! Family groups are probably not the only other shoppers taking up your space and impeding your progress. Perhaps you're a tad grouchy -- if you aren't feeling well but insist on walking the extra mile from a distant parking space 'on principle'.

We have those signs everywhere around here - grocery stores, department stores, clothing stores....

There have been times that I've been extremely grateful for them! I've been 9 1/2 months pregnant, barely able to waddle across the parking lot, 2 other little ones, and yet I still had shopping to do. Those spots close to the store were MUCH appreciated. Or going shopping with a newborn in wind and snow - very nice to have reserved spots near the store entrance. Our family does what works best for us, and for several reasons that usually means me shopping during the day with the kids.

I'm certainly not asking for special treatment, but being a stay at home mom, sometimes it's necessary for me to shop with my kids, and those spots have at times been a huge blessing!

Cynic, as a family living teacher, I can assure you there are very FEW places in your community that are BETTER places to take a child than a grocery store. It's an important part of a child's education--a place where parents can teach about: colors, smells, food groups, nutritional choices, parts of plants, food preparation, science, reading, money management, responsibility... need I go on? Every trip to a grocery store is a valuable educational outing for any responsible parent. It's wonderful to see parents making shopping a family experience. I'm delighted to say that many of the families in my neighborhood do so, and enjoy it as a social family activity. It's a shame it bothers you, but it's great that the kids are learning about shopping at an early age. Definitely a life skill they'll be using the rest of their lives

Azzalea you are correct that going grocery shopping is an excellent teaching tool but most parents aren't doing that. they let their kids run wild and are merely teaching them a sense of entitlement to do whatever they want. Staring with a special parking spot. LOL

When my kids were young going shopping with myself or DH was a privilege. They knew they had to stay with us, use their quiet voices and look with their eyes, not their hands unless they were asked to get something.

Now days parents allow their children to behave like they are at the playground. Teaching them my patootie!!!

If we are to have special parking for families or pregnant women than why not special parking for seniors, for people with dogs, for people who smoke and just need a pack of cigarettes, for people who want to just run in for milk etc?

If mom gets to park in a special spot because she has a kid or a tummy than so should the person toting granny.

I know! Lets have special parking for everyone.

Oh guess what? We already do. They are called parking lots.
I'm old enough to remember when mom didn't even have a car. Mom took her kids on the bus or walked to the market, the bakery, the shoe repair and the dry cleaner. All with kids in tow and babe in stroller. Guess what? The kids walked beside mom, didn't run into the street,and said thank you when the counter girl at the bakery gave them a cookie. Kids must have been so much smarter then. Or maybe it was the parents?

If you have a difficult pregnancy then get a tempory placard. If you have kids you can't control then leave them at home until you can.

If you park in a special spot for being preggers because it's so hard to get around than why are you still walking the mall two hours later loaded with Nordstum bags and eating that huge Cinnabon at the food court washed down with that gazillion calorie smoothie?

As several have said ... wrestling kids and parcels is no picnic, whether the kid(s) are inside or outside of Mom's skin.

Seems like there are different approaches to the concept of showing consideration for folks who may be having some extra complications in life.

Being just an old fart who's enjoying good health (though I'm developing some circulation problems in the legs, they haven't interfered with my travel, thus far) I can testify that I don't consider parking in a handicapped space ... or a pram space, either.

I figure that some extra walking isn't going to hurt me - in fact, my doc says that I need more of it.

Which I've been getting more of in the past week, doing some hitch-hiking (fortunately, in mild weather, though with some snow) while my car was either non-operational or in the car hospital ... and I'm pleased that it's back home now (though the repair not yet paid for).

May your New Year be a happy time for you and yours.

ole joyful

"We also have 20 reserved *green* spaces for carpoolers which I see abused regularly by single drivers."

Are the carpool spaces only for those folks who carpool with other employees at your company? I know plenty of folks who carpool with folks who all work in the same general area, but in different buildings. My husband and I carpool, but work in buildings a little less than a mile apart. We go to his building first, he gets out, then I drive to my building where I pay $100/month to park - but not in a carpool spot. Just because you see a single occupant vehicle pull into a carpool parking spot doesn't mean that that vehicle doesn't carpool. Does your company have a designated unit that manages the parking permits? If so, check to see what they do as far as verifying carpoolers. I used to work at an agency that required an application form to be filled out in order to park in the attached garage, and if you wanted a carpool permit you had to put down the name, home address, work address, and work phone number of each additional person in the carpool. Those applications were "gone over with a fine tooth comb." If the carpool route didn't make sense, it was denied; and the parking permit folks contacted everyone on the carpool list to make sure they really did carpool. (An example of a denied carpool permit -- the driver lived in the San Francisco Bay area and drove to downtown Sacramento to work. He put on his carpool permit application that his carpool rider was another state employee. BUT, the home address of the carpool rider was in East Sacramento, which meant that the driver, after driving 100 miles, went quite a few miles past his office to pick up someone else and then turned around and headed back towards downtown.) And carpools didn't get a break on the cost of the monthly permit - they just had a higher priority on the waiting list, which is why folks would try to cheat.