Apply for a new or request renewal of an existing advisory disabled parking bay

You can apply for a new advisory disabled parking bay or apply to renew existing advisory disabled parking bay markings if:

• you hold a current Blue Badge registered at the address to which the application relates
• your Blue Badge does not expire within 6 months of your application submission. If it does, you will need to reapply for a Blue Badge before you apply for a bay.
• you regularly drive a vehicle, or are regularly a passenger in a vehicle which is registered at the address to which the application relates*
• you do not have another place to park (for example, a driveway, garage, carport or allocated parking)

*You will need to send one of these documents along with your application, which shows the same address as the application address:

• a copy of a DVLA vehicle registration document
• proof of a Motability vehicle 

An advisory disabled parking bay location must:

• be on a public residential road and not on private land. Find out if your road is maintainable by Suffolk County Council*
• be directly outside the residence of the Blue Badge holder 
• have significant demand for parking on the road and parking space in a suitable location close to the address of the Blue Badge holder is not available for most of the day
• be on a road that has a 30mph or less speed limit
• not be opposite or within 10 metres (32 feet) of a junction 
• not be within a turning head of a cul-de-sac and not regularly used as a turning point 
• not have other road markings, such as yellow lines, white zig-zags, bus stop, cycle lanes, “keep clear” or box markings
• have enough space on the road for an advisory disabled parking bay - bays are around 6.6 metres long and 2.7-3.6 metres wide
• have enough road width to enable cars to pass without mounting the kerb on the opposite side of the road or obstruct driveways
• have no safety implications or seriously affect other users of the highway. For example, on a bend or brow of a hill which would create a “blind spot” for other traffic

*If you want to request for a parking bay on housing association or private land, you should refer to the land owner. They would have to both approve and fund the marking.

To apply for a new or request renewal of an existing advisory disabled parking bay, please:

1. download and read our Notes for Guidance (pages 1 to 4) and Application Form (page 5 onward) (Word, 608KB)
2. keep the Notes for Guidance for your records
3. detach the Application Form, then complete and sign

Send your application form and copy of DVLA vehicle registration document or proof of Motability vehicle to customer.services@suffolk.gov.uk or:

We recommend you keep copies of the completed application form and send copies (not originals) of accompanying documents for future reference as we will destroy the supporting documents you send us once we have examined them.

If you need further help, you can contact us using webchat or email us at customer.services@suffolk.gov.uk.

When we receive your application, we will check that:

• you have completed all required sections of the application form
• you have provided a copy of one of the following documents along with your application, which shows the same address as the application address:
• a copy of a DVLA vehicle registration document
• proof of a Motability vehicle
• the application address is on a public road and not on private land
• the Blue Badge is registered at the address to which the application relates
• the Blue Badge is valid for a period longer than 6 months of the date we receive your application
• the vehicle is registered to and kept at the Blue Badge holder’s address
• you meet the criteria set out in the Notes for Guidance based on the information provided in the application form

We recommend you keep copies of the completed application form and send copies (not originals) of accompanying documents for future reference as we will destroy the supporting documents you send us once we have examined them.

We apologise that it is taking significantly longer than the 8 weeks  quoted in the application form to respond to applications.  This is due to budget changes in this financial year and we have had to find funds to deliver this service, which is provided at no cost to the applicant. However, we are now processing applications as a high priority. We will write to you with the outcome of our assessment.

If we approve your application, it can take up to 12 months between an application being approved and a parking bay being marked on the road, though sometimes it can take longer.

If Suffolk Highways is planning to undertake any work at the application address within the following 12 months, we will suggest that the markings should not be laid until that work takes place.

If an existing advisory disabled parking bay is removed following roadworks, including roadworks undertaken by a utility company, a new application will be required.

However, Suffolk Highways accepts no responsibility for replacement of the marking should it become faded or covered by third party roadworks such as those carried out by utilities companies and you will be responsible for applying for the marking to be replaced.

Sometimes Suffolk Highways may not be able to approve an advisory disabled parking bay application because of local planning or traffic considerations. This may be the case even if the application meets the criteria.

If your application is unsuccessful, we will outline the reason(s) why the application has not been agreed in writing.

We reserve the right to refuse to implement/renew the marking where we do not think it is suitable or where it is suspected that it will cause tensions within communities. Similarly, we can remove the marking should it be shown to cause community tensions.

What happens if I don’t agree with your decision not to approve my application?

If you disagree with our decision, you can write to us setting out the reason(s) why you consider that we have not applied the criteria correctly.

You can do this by emailing customer.services@suffolk.gov.uk or writing to:

We will review your application in light of the reason(s) you have put forward and we will write to you again following further consideration.

As the bay is available for anyone who has a Blue Badge, we will not automatically remove the marking.

If we are resurfacing the road, we will check our records to see whether the original applicant still needs the bay. If they do not, we will cover the bay with new surfacing. Otherwise, we will let the markings fade and disappear.