Accessibility in the News — 3/22/19

University systems across the United States have come under fire within the past couple weeks. With the development of a widespread college admissions scandal, many people with disabilities feel let down yet again. Some Universities have been found to be discriminating against already marginalized groups by accepting bribes to let unqualified students into their school, and compromising the integrity of degrees earned by their students. Though many institutions across the country have made large accessibility improvements on campuses and University operated websites, others still lag behind while students grow impatient. In other news several local governments are finding themselves in legal trouble due to non-compliance, and inaccessible cities.

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National News (U.S.)

Next steps for Pekin accessibility lawsuit, city denies fault

March 13, 2019 | Source: Week |

After three months of silence, Pekin City leadership are denying allegations of breaking several disability laws. Among the complaints, a lack of wheelchair accessibility throughout the city. 25 News Reporter Lauren Melendez has been digging deeper into the case for months and explains the plaintiffs argue the lawsuit is about mobility, not money. To be clear, none of the seven plaintiffs would receive a dime if the city admitted fault. Now that it’s clear from their class-action response, 25 News is investigating what happens next…

Students With Disabilities Call College Admissions Cheating ‘Big Slap In The Face’

March 14, 2019 | Source: KHN |

For Savannah Treviño-Casias, this week’s news about the college admissions cheating scandal was galling, considering how much red tape the Arizona State University senior went through to get disability accommodations when she took the SAT. “It felt like such a big slap in the face,” said Treviño-Casias, 23, who was diagnosed in sixth grade with dyscalculia, a disability that makes it more difficult to learn and do math. “I was pretty disgusted. It just makes it harder for people who actually have a diagnosed learning disability to be believed.”…

The Smithsonian Debuts New Accessibility Technology For Blind and Low-Vision Patrons

March 15, 2019 | Source: Washington City Paper |

Visiting a museum is an enjoyable experience, but for visitors who are blind or have low vision, it can be a limiting one. But patrons who visit Smithsonian museums now have the opportunity to try innovative technology aimed at providing a new level of access and freedom. Earlier this week at the National Museum of American History, the Smithsonian debuted Aira technology, which is currently available at all Smithsonian museums in D.C., as well as the National Zoo…

Older homeowners are driving the home improvement market

March 15, 2019 | Source: Housing Wire |

As Parents And Grandparents Age, More And More Millennials Are Family Caregivers- NPR

Armed with record amounts of home equity and an expressed desire to remain in their homes as they age, older homeowners are driving the home improvement market. A recent study by the Joint Center for Housing Studies at Harvard University revealed that households 55 and older account for half of all current home improvement spending. And, as Baby Boomers reach their 70s and 80s, researchers say their investments in home modifications to enhance accessibility will soar…

What Disney World Is Really Like For Kids With Disabilities

March 15, 2019 | Source: Romper |

It claims to be the most magical place on earth, but how is Disney World for people with disabilities? My younger daughter Freyja qualified for Make-A-Wish, and, like half of all wish recipients, she wished to go to Disney World. But traveling with her and all her accessories is exhausting just to contemplate. Freyja uses a walker to walk when she has energy. When she is fatigued, she uses a wheelchair. She switches back and forth, often multiple times a day, and insists on having both whenever possible…

The Real Reason Local Governments are Facing More ADA Non-Compliance Fines

March 15, 2019 | Source: Governing |

Your community would never think to build a new office building without installing a wheelchair accessible ramp. Nor would it disallow a visually-impaired child to be accompanied by his or her seeing eye dog during an afternoon recreation activity. For all of the accommodations that your local government enforces for the approximate 19 percent of the non-institutionalized citizens living with a disability or physical impairment, why should accessibility and inclusion stop when a citizen moves from interacting in the physical world to the digital world?…

Businesses — Why using Wix and GoDaddy Increases your Lawsuit Risk

March 17, 2019 | Source: Medium |

Wait, I can get sued for using Wix and GoDaddy?? What the Actual Heck?!?! Why yes. Yes, you can. In a heart beat. Here is a little background on how this story came into being. I’ve recently spent an absolutely mind blowing two days in Anaheim at CSUN pre-conferences followed by the CSUN conference itself. I taught Accessibility Program Management strategies with Gian Wild at the ICT Accessibility Bootcamp (love teaching at bootcamps !) and then spent the day just listening to leaders in the field at the inaugural Digital Accessibility Legal Summit…

Volusia’s city governments work to make websites ADA-compliant

March 17, 2019 | Source: Daytona Beach News-Journal |

Volusia to pay out $25,000, make website more accessible to blind, after being sued

March 18, 2019 | Source: Daytona Beach News-Journal

Florida’s cities and counties have spent countless dollars to make sure buildings, parks and other frequented places are accessible to all residents and visitors since the Americans with Disabilities Act passed in 1990. But nearly 30 years later, with the vast majority of government information available on the internet, lawsuits are on the rise as many communities are playing catch-up in ensuring their government websites are just as accessible as other services…

Perrysburg businesses may get money to comply with ADA

March 17, 2019 | Source: Sentinel-Tribune |

City council is considering a plan to budget $180,000 to help businesses become compliant with the Americans with Disabilities Act. The Wednesday meeting of the Planning and Zoning Committee included a presentation from the Ability Center. “Mostly the Ability Center is here to support the proposal by the city administration,” said Katherine Thomas, a disability rights attorney with the center. “We’re excited that the city administration has created this proposal in part because we think this would be a piece in the puzzle.”…

MTA looks to extend accessible e-hailing pilot through end of 2019

March 17, 2019 | Source: amNY |

The MTA is moving to extend its wildly popular pilot that allows disabled New Yorkers to hail accessible taxis on demand — though the future of the program is still up in the air. The authority will propose to its board a plan to extend the program through the end of 2019, the MTA announced Sunday. The pilot, currently slated to end next month, would still be available to its current, small pool of 1,200 Access-A-Ride users at $2.75 per trip…

The University should provide an ADA accessible Lawn room

March 17, 2019 | Source: University of Virginia The Cavalier Daily |

When people think of the University, they most likely picture the iconic Lawn and Rotunda. Living on the Lawn is one of the highest honors a student can receive, as it is located at the very center of our University community and has been so integral to our school’s history. However, since the Lawn and Rotunda are designated UNESCO World Heritage Sites, these spaces are not legally required to comply with the Americans with Disabilities Act…

Blind runner makes history by finishing NYC Half Marathon with help of guide dogs

March 18, 2019 | Source: CBS News |

For many, conquering a half marathon is all about putting one foot in front of the other. For runner Thomas Panek, a few paws also helped get him to the finish line. Panek made history Sunday at the United Airlines New York City Half Marathon by becoming the first blind runner to complete the race led by guide dogs, instead of human guides. The athlete finished the race in just over 2 hours and 20 minutes, according to the New York Road Runners. The team of Labrador retrievers — Waffle, Westley and Gus — took turns running with Panek…

Artificial intelligence tools could benefit chemists with disabilities. So why aren’t they?

March 18, 2019 | Source: Chemical & Engineering News |

Hoby Wedler remembers his years in graduate school as many computational chemists do: long hours writing code, running calculations, and poring over papers. Unlike many computational chemists, however, Wedler had a constant companion while he did those things—an assistant who could do things like describe figures in the article he was reading. Because Wedler is blind, he needed the support to complete his research. Over the past decade or so—at the same time Wedler was working on his PhD—chemists around the world have been thinking about ways they could take repetitive lab work out of scientists’ hands…

Why It’s Important To Build A Better Product Through Accessibility Design

March 18, 2019 | Source: Forbes |

As product designers and developers, we pride ourselves in using our best creativity and ingenuity to build better products. But “better” by whose standards? For example, if the latest kitchen gadgets, computer apps and ATMs cannot be easily used by a blind person, would the visually impaired community really consider these tools to be an improvement for them? Or if autonomous cars were made accessible only for the able-bodied (and not, say, for wheelchair-bound riders who travel alone), would these disabled consumers deem this technology as an enhancement to their quality of life?…

How Seiichi Miyake’s bumpy tiles impacted railway platforms and streets around the world

March 18, 2019 | Source: CNN & PRNewswire |

Most people probably don’t give a second thought to the yellow, bumpy tiles near the edge of subway platforms and urban crosswalks. But for the visually impaired, they can mean the difference between life and death. The person who dreamed up those tactile squares? Seiichi Miyake, whose invention is recognized today on Google’s homepage. Here’s what you need to know about Miyake and how his invention ended up in public spaces around the world. The tactile blocks help visually impaired people navigate public spaces by letting them know when they are approaching danger…

Court Dismisses ADA Lawsuit Against Ohio CU

March 18, 2019 | Source: CU Today & CUNA |

The U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Ohio has dismissed a lawsuit against BMI Federal Credit Union that had alleged violations of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). The suit is similar to those that have targeted credit unions across the country over their websites. Both CUNA and the Ohio CU League had filed amicus briefs in the case. Judge Algenon L. Marbley granted BMI’s motion to dismiss the lawsuit after finding the plaintiff lacks standing to bring the lawsuit…

Commissioners roll into City Hall for brief experience in wheelchairs

March 18, 2019 | Source: The Ledger |

Lakeland officials were forced to flex their muscles when facing an uphill battle Monday. City commissioners, and Lakeland Police Department Capt. Hans Lehman, took part in the “Wheelchair Challenge” to experience firsthand the difficulties individuals with disabilities face when attempting to navigate Lakeland’s streets. The event, proposed by the Lakeland Alliance for Accessibility and the City Accessibility Liaison group, started off inside the Lakeland Electric parking garage with the goal of making it to the third floor of City Hall for their afternoon meeting…

Boomtown 2040: The impact of Austin’s continued growth on accessibility

March 18, 2019 | Source: KVUE |

It’s something we hear and talk about a lot: the effects Austin’s continued growth is having on things like affordable housing or how we get around town. For those with disabilities, it presents the same challenges, but sometimes in different ways. Renee Lopez is a native Austinite who has seen the city grow rapidly through the years. Lopez has a genetic condition called arthrogryposis. She said she could walk for many years, but needed to use braces. At 45 she began using a motorized wheelchair because it’s easier for her to get around…

4 myths about accessibility and online learning

March 18, 2019 | Source: eCampus News |

Those who are in higher education are probably tired of hearing about accessibility. But accessibility awareness is the key point to making courses accessible. Bringing this awareness to faculty on how they design a course had been an ongoing charge for those in higher education that work with course design. Myth #1: Students with learning differences don’t take online courses. Many students do not report the need for accommodations in an online course. Why? They have to jump through so many hoops to get an accommodation…

US Attorney Reaches Settlement With Condo Developers Over Disability Access Issues

March 19, 2019 Source: Lawfuel & Daily Voice &The Journal News |

Geoffrey S. Berman, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, announced today that the United States has settled its federal Fair Housing Act lawsuit against Bedford Development LLC, Carnegie Construction Corp., Jobco Inc., Robert Pascucci, and Warshauer Mellusi Warshauer Architects, P.C. The settlement requires Defendants to pay up to $195,000 for retrofits at the Sutton Manor condominium in Mount Kisco, New York, in order to make the individual units and the common areas of the building more accessible to individuals with disabilities, and to pay…

Lawsuits: Domino’s, Playboy websites aren’t accessible to blind users

March 19, 2019 | Source: Detroit Free Press |

In thousands of cases that are testing the limits of the law and cyberspace, businesses are increasingly facing lawsuits that contend their websites aren’t accessible to people who are blind and are in violation of federal disability mandates. “Blind people want access like everybody else does,” said Michael Powell of Warren, who has been visually impaired since birth. “We have screen-reading software, and it doesn’t cost a lot of money to make a website accessible.”…

Advocates, businesses say ADA causes trouble for disabled in digital world

March 19, 2019 | Source: UPI |

As more tasks of daily life migrate online, more advocates are getting serious about holding businesses responsible for making their websites accessible to Americans with disabilities — an issue industries say is not made clear by a 29-year-old federal law. Recently, U.S. courts have seen an uptick in lawsuits filed by disabled Americans — and they’re winning. The suits are part of a sustained effort to force companies and organizations to come into compliance with U.S. disability law — even though it’s not clear exactly what that entails…

Chicago task force drafts roadmap for future of city mobility

March 19, 2019 | Source: Smart Cities Dive |

A transportation task force commissioned by Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel put forth a report with more than 50 recommendations to improve city mobility, including launching an e-scooter pilot and an autonomous vehicle (AV) pilot, establishing a governance framework for data sharing and improving the availability and use of micromobility services. The report outlines innovative strategies to support a modern, multi-modal transportation system that integrates new mobility services and technologies…

What to Do When an Airline Damages Your Wheelchair or Scooter

March 19, 2019 | Source: Lifehacker |

Flying’s difficult as it is, and it can be doubly bad for passengers who use wheelchairs and scooters. According to a U.S. Department of Transportation report, from to December 4 to December 31, 2018, some 701 wheelchairs and scooters were “mishandled,” a vague term which likely refers to everything from lost to damaged devices—and comes out to some 25 mobility devices a day impacted by air travel. But if your wheelchair is damaged, what kind of recourse do you actually have?…

New study reveals housing accessibility barriers when finding a place to live

March 20, 2019 | Source: WJLA |

“Okay, buddy!” Claire Stanley said, looking down at her guide dog, Kodiak. Stanley is legally blind. She says 10-year-old Kodiak is typically by her side. But even Kodiak, she says, can’t help to guide her through a process she calls frustrating. “More results sort. Maybe?” Stanley said softly, working to filter search results on her laptop. She’s looking to buy her first home, but says the search isn’t easy online. “We all need a place to stay,” Stanley said. “So, it’s really frustrating when that thing you need to do to get to that point is inaccessible. It’s pretty, pretty frustrating.”…

Disabled residents in the D.C. region face obstacles when searching for housing, report says

March 20, 2019 | Source: The Washington Post |

On a sunny afternoon on the first day of spring, Deepa Goraya opened her laptop and sat at her dining-room table in the bright D.C. condominium she has never seen. Goraya, 34, a disability rights lawyer who is blind, prepared to do a Google search with screen-reader software — a program that reads each word on a website at blistering speed in a robotlike monotone. While unintelligible to the uninitiated, the reader is a vast improvement over research methods available to Goraya years ago, which included finding her mom or someone else willing to read to her…

Pittsburgh Has Work To Do To Include People With Disabilities In The City’s Future

March 20, 2019 | Source: 90.5 WESA |

Uneven sidewalks, limited navigable pathways and businesses without proper accommodations for wheelchairs are just some of the obstacles facing Heather Tomko every day. Tomko is a public health researcher at the University of Pittsburgh and the founder of Accessible YOUniverse, an organization that advocates for accessibility and civil rights for people with disabilities. She says she initially became an advocate “out of necessity” — Tomko was born with spinal muscular atrophy, a genetic condition that requires her to use a wheelchair…

Lawsuit Seeks to Force Lyft to Provide ‘Full, Equal’ Service to Wheelchair Users

March 20, 2019 | Source: KQED |

We’re now in Year Seven of the great transportation disruption unleashed on the smartphone-toting world in large part by San Francisco ride-hailing service Lyft. But a federal lawsuit filed Wednesday says that one significant population is still being denied the go anywhere, go anytime benefits bestowed by the company’s service: wheelchair users who need specially equipped vehicles to get to appointments, the airport, dates or work. The class-action complaint filed in U.S. District Court by Oakland’s Disability Rights Advocates says that Lyft violates the federal Americans with Disabilities Act…

Concern over Vietnam memorial accessibility heats up

March 20, 2019 | Source: The Daily Progress |

An advocacy group for people with disabilities says Charlottesville isn’t complying with federal accessibility laws at the Dogwood Vietnam Memorial. Tom Vandever, executive director of the Charlottesville Independence Resource Center and a former city mayor, sent a letter to Interim City Manager Mike Murphy on Wednesday outlining ongoing concerns about access to the memorial in McIntire Park. The memorial doesn’t have a parking lot and the only way to access it is by parking at the nearby Charlottesville-Albemarle Rescue Squad and taking sidewalks across a busy intersection to a path up a hill…

Colorado Springs to build 15000 curb ramps to settle accessibility lawsuit

March 20, 2019 | Source: Colorado Springs Gazette & U.S. News & World Report |

Colorado Springs has settled its second lawsuit in six months involving claims the city’s streets and sidewalks are inaccessible to the disabled. The newest lawsuit, a class-action case, was filed Wednesday in U.S. District Court in Denver by Tim Fox and Julia Campins, representing the Civil Rights Education and Enforcement Center and Campins Benham-Baker, respectively, Fox said. The attorneys represent two individual plaintiffs and all others with different access needs…

NYC Agrees To Make All Sidewalk Curbs Accessible To The Disabled

March 21, 2019 | Source: Gothamist |

In a landmark victory for disability rights advocates, the de Blasio administration has agreed to survey and ensure that all of the city’s roughly 162,000 sidewalk curbs are accessible for New Yorkers with mobility and vision-impairment issues. A U.S. District Court judge on Tuesday issued preliminary approval of a settlement that resolves two class action lawsuits brought by disability rights activists, the first going back as far as 1994. Susan Dooha, the executive director of the Center for Independence of the Disabled, the lead plaintiff in the most recent case from 2014, called the agreement with the city “long overdue.”…

www @ 30: Story of the Web

March 21, 2019 | Source: Daily Sun |

The World Wide Web, commonly referred to as www, turned 30 last week. Envisaged in the lab of CERN, a large nuclear physics laboratory in Switzerland, the World Wide Web was first introduced as a proposal by Tim Berners-Lee to help his colleagues in CERN share information with different computers. The proposal was initially marked ‘Vague but exciting’ by Berners-Lee’s boss Mike Sendall, who later allowed Berners-Lee to turn the proposal into a working model…

Jack Fact — The Joint Center for Housing Studies of Harvard University, estimates that by 2035, one third of head of households will be aged 65 or older. According to JCHS, homeownership rates are higher among older adults than the general population. They anticipate ownership rates in the 65 and older segment to increase by 62 percent, from 24 million in 2015 to a projected 38 million in 2035, while homeowners over age 80 could double to 12 million (JCHS, 2016). In the twenty-year projection, the study states, “the number of older households with a disability will increase by 76 percent.”

Hit The Road Jack — Travel Made Easy- Using travel resources

International News

Lyon: putting accessibility at the heart of city life

March 14, 2019 | Source: ELTIS- France |

Public authorities, transport operators, civil society organisations and other public and private sector stakeholder in Greater Lyon have been successfully improving accessibility addressing it as a cross-cutting issue and investing substantially in creating a barrier-free and inclusive environment. Many cities across the European Union are working hard to create liveable cities that are accessible to all – regardless of age, mobility or ability. The city of Lyon in France has chosen to address accessibility as a cross-cutting issue and to invest substantially in creating a barrier-free and inclusive environment…

Accessibility observers to help PwD voters in Bengal

March 14, 2019 | Source: Outlook India& Times of India& Millennium Post |

Based on Election Commission’s instructions, six accessibility observers will oversee the work related to PwD (persons with disabilities) voters in Bengal, an official said, here on Thursday. “The accessibility observers will oversee implementation of the instructions of the EC to ensure accessible election at the field level. Divisional commissioners of all six divisions are deployed as accessibility observers,” Additional Chief Electoral Officer, West Bengal, Sanjay Basu told reporters…

McMaster addressing barriers to diversity and inclusion in employment

March 14, 2019 | Source: The Silhouette- Canada |

Statistics Canada data suggests that persons with disabilities, Indigenous and racialized identities are vastly underrepresented in workforces in Canada. To help marginalized students and alumni seek employment, the Student Success Centre launched the Career Access Program for Students, a suite of services offered in collaboration with the Student Accessibility Centre and Maccess. CAPS focuses on skill building and career development through career advising, strategic goal setting and personal branding…

No plan to spend accessibility surcharge on new vehicles: report

March 14, 2019 | Source: CBC- Canada & Ottawa Citizen |

City staff have come up with a plan to spend the cash generated through an accessibility surcharge paid by Uber and Lyft, but the recommendations don’t call for adding to the city’s fleet of accessible vehicles on the roads. In a report made public ahead of next week’s meeting of the community and protective services committee, staff said that as of Dec. 31, 2018, the total amount of money in the vehicle-for-hire accessibility fund was close to $1.25 million…

Tamil Nadu initiates steps to make 50 government buildings differently-abled friendly

March 16, 2019 | Source: The New Indian Express- India |

After the Supreme Court rap, the State government is now looking at making 50 buildings differently-abled friendly. A bench comprising Justices A K Sikri and Ashok Bhushan passed a slew of directives, including that all government buildings providing any service to the public be made fully accessible to persons with disabilities by June 2019 as per The Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act 2016. It is learnt that besides making the buildings easily accessible for the physically challenged, the State government is looking at making buses with such facility for them…

Wheelchair boxing demo prompts B.C. gym to take a jab at national movement

March 16, 2019 | Source: Columbia Valley Pioneer- Canada |

A boxing gym in B.C. in will be showcasing the skills of wheelchair boxers during their upcoming Hit 2 Fit charity boxing event – and they are looking for avenues to make boxing more accessible to disabled athletes in Canada through an international partnership. Adaptive boxing, which includes wheelchair boxing, blind boxing and boxing for those with head or neurological trauma, is becoming increasingly popular as accessibility for disabled athletes rises to the forefront in sporting communities…

Furniture for the disabled, thanks to 3D printers

March 16, 2019 | Source: Bend Bulletin- Israel |

Extended couch legs that make it easier to get off the sofa. An oversize switch for turning lamps on and off. A handle to attach to the side of a shower curtain. These simple hacks don’t drastically change Ikea furniture — but they can transform a product for people with disabilities. To make some of their most popular products more accessible, Ikea’s branch in Israel partnered with Israeli disability rights groups to design low-tech add-ons — like special zippers and handles…

DDC Pulwama launches Movement for Empowerment of Persons with Disabilities

March 16, 2019 | Source: Scoop News- India |

In connection to follow up of the meeting with disability delegation under the leadership of renowned disability activist Javed Ahmad Tak , Committed towards the inclusive and accessible governance, District Development Commissioner Pulwama Syed Abid Rashid Shah, IAS today convened a meeting of Persons with Disabilities and the officers of the line departments here at DC office complex Pulwama. Speaking on the occasion, DDC said that District Administration is committed for safe, accessible and dignified life of Persons with Disabilities…

Federal Government continues to break down barriers through investments in accessibility and seniors

March 17, 2019 | Source: Net Newsledger- Canada |

Every year, investments made in the Kenora riding through the Enabling Accessibility Fund (EAF) and the New Horizons for Seniors Fund (NHFS) work together to break down barriers which prevent persons with disabilities from fully participating in all aspects of Canadian society and help foster social inclusion and the engagement of seniors. This year alone, the EAF invested capital into three organizations in the Kenora riding, including the Lake of the Woods District Hospital, Wabaseemoong Independent Nations, and the Kiizhik Education Corporation, for a total of over $119,000…

Faisel Saeed: Touring Israel In A Wheelchair

March 18, 2019 | Source: Canadian Jewish News- Canada |

Faisel Saeed and his wife, Arifa, recently returned from Israel, where they participated in the first ever Canada-Israel Inclusion Mission. Saeed is an IT security expert at BMO and is a wheelchair-user who serves on the board of March of Dimes Canada. The mission was a joint program of March of Dimes, the Reena Foundation and Holland Bloorview Kids Rehabilitation Hospital. It brought 36 people to Israel, many with disabilities, to visit tourist sites and witness Israel’s innovations on behalf of the disabled…

Qatar’s Deaf Community supported by Sasol’s ‘Accessible Qatar’ Initiative

March 18, 2019 | Source: I Love Qatar- Qatar |

Sasol, the international integrated chemical and energy company, offered its support to the deaf community through its ‘Accessible Qatar’ Ambassadors Programme by donating resources to the deaf winter camp. The camp, held annually by the Qatari Centre of Social Cultural for the Deaf (QCSCD) and attended by nearly 100 members of the community, features various sport, cultural and entertainment activities for the deaf community while promoting a spirit of teamwork and inclusion…

Fernie’s Accessibility Assessment beginning

March 18, 2019 | Source: E-Know- Canada |

One in seven Canadians has a disability and that number is expected to rise to one in five by 2036. According to population size that could mean 1,500 Fernie citizens could have a disability of some type. Public buildings and spaces, commercial buildings owners and service providers can expect to be contacted in the coming weeks by the Canadian Adaptive Network (CAN). CAN will be undertaking a community-wide assessment for accessibility and will do its best to be inclusive!..

Must Condos Making Renovations Implement Accessibility Measures?

March 21, 2019 | Source: Condo Adviser- Canada |

Staying on top of accessibility issues can be a challenging task. There are many factors to juggle and many important rights to balance against one another. On top of all of this are the obvious financial and logistical concerns that can accompany making a building accessible. One worry that some corporations may have is, if they implement some sort of accessibility device or modification to one section of the building, must they then do this everywhere? Take a ramp as an example. If you install one somewhere, must you make the rest of the building accessible?…

City cracking down on elusive accessible taxis

March 21, 2019 | Source: CBC- Canada |

The City of Ottawa is cracking down on drivers of wheelchair-accessible cabs who aren’t always available for customers who need them. The city recently laid eight charges under its taxi bylaw and plans to lay more, chief bylaw officer Roger Chapman said Thursday. Currently, 191 of the taxis on Ottawa’s roads — about 17 per cent of the fleet — are accessible, and the city has only issued accessible taxi licences over the past decade. The bylaw stipulates that any accessible cab must be on the road at least 10 hours a day, five days a week…

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