House Number 4524 Needs a Big Push

Governor Deval Patrick's office has signaled that it is not sure whether the recently passed House 4524 will be signed.

This is the bill discussed in the previous blog entry. It would raise fines for illegal parking at bus stops, so that people could use buses safely -- now busses often cannot get close enough to the curb for people to get on and off.

This almost certainly means that there is opposition to the bill from a significant source (I have no idea who would have a problem with it), and the governor's office is waiting to see how many (and how hard) advocates are willing to argue for its passage.

That means that every one of us can now make a difference!

All you have to do is one of the following:

• call the governor's office at 617-725-4005.
• e-mail the governor's office by clicking on this link
• write a letter to the governor at Governor Deval Patrick, Room 360, State House, Boston, MA 02133

For more information, read the fine Globe article by Noah Bierman in Sunday's Globe.

Sample telephone script "Hello, my name is so and so, and I am asking the governor to support disability rights by signing House 4524, to raise the fine for parking at a bus stop."

Or you could ask the governor to "support access for everyone by signing house 4524", or "support safety for mothers with strollers" or whatever you want to say. You will be talking to one of his staff, who will be keeping a record of how many people call. You can be sure that a lot of phone calls will get noticed. Do it with a friend, it's a lot more fun!

If you would like to tell the staff members about your own experience with a bus that couldn't pull over, all the better. But it is not what you say that is important, it's that you say something!

As discussed in the previous blog entry, the fine would be raised to a uniform $100 across the state. The fine is now $55 in Boston.

-- John B. Kelly