New web site
offers information about access to public places
SOUTH
EASTON, MA – A new web site has been launched which will allow people with
disabilities, their families, and friends to share first-hand information
about handicapped-accessible restaurants, hotels, theaters, and other public
places around New England.
The free web
site, New England Handicap Access, can be found at
www.NEHandicapAccess.com. It
profiles a facility’s general level of accessibility, availability of
handicapped parking and restrooms, ease of mobility inside a facility, and
other key indicators. It also includes links to other services and issues
that impact accessibility.
“This is
really a forum that’s based on reports we’ll get from people who visit a
public place,” says founder Dr. Jerald R. Biddle, himself a member of the
disability community. “The information we get may not be quite as rosy as
what you hear from a facility’s management,” he observes, “but it’ll be a
lot more accurate.”
As the
database grows, it will include listings of restaurants, hotels, theaters,
museums, parks, sports arenas, and stores for the cities and towns in each
New England state. Dr. Biddle says the web site will allow a user to choose
a state, then click on a city or town and the type of place they’re
interested in, then do a search. “It’s also easy to share your own
information about a place you’ve been by sending an e-mail to
Access@NEHandicapAccess.com,” he adds. “The Share section of the web
site tells you what information to include.”
Asked how he
got the idea for this Web site, he responds, “Well, there certainly was a
cumulative process – not being able to get into a restaurant that advertises
‘one small step in’ and turns out to have two very steep steps, that kind of
thing. But the clincher was the time we booked a hotel room described
verbally and in print as a handicapped-accessible room.” He explains that,
in reality, the bathroom was large with a roll-in shower, but there wasn’t
enough space in the room to get a wheelchair from the doorway to the bed.
“This was a major hotel, and they certainly meant well, but obviously they
don’t understand what handicapped-accessible really means!
“Two things
occurred to me,” he recalls. “One, for people with disabilities to go
places and do things, they need accurate information about accessibility.
Two, the most accurate information about an ‘accessible’ public place is
going to come from people who’ve been there. So I developed this web site
as a kind of forum for them to share their information.”
And what are
his hopes for the site? Dr. Biddle observes that it will grow only as a
cooperative effort. “I hope people will understand that even one little bit
of information they send in will benefit a lot of other people. If
individuals and agencies spread the word and tell others about the site and
start sending in their input about accessible public places they’ve been,
we’ll have a resource that will help expand the world a little bit more for
people with disabilities.”
-------------------------------------------
New England Handicap
Access,
www.NEHandicapAccess.com, is a
free information forum established and maintained by members of the
disability community seeking reliable information about accessible public
places throughout the region. For more information contact
Access@NEHandicapAccess.com.
ACCESSIBLE RECREATION OPPORTUNITIES
ABOUND THIS SUMMER
The Massachusetts Department of Conservation and
Recreation (DCR) is offering a variety of adaptive recreation opportunities
across the state this summer through its Universal Access Program. People
with disabilities and their friends and families are invited to participate
in the activities, which will be held primarily on weekdays, June-September.
Activities will include cycling, kayaking, sailing, canoeing, rowing,
hiking, fishing, interpretive programs, and more.
The
Universal Access Program provides recreational accessibility to state and
urban parks for individuals with disabilities, their families, and friends.
For persons with disabilities, free use of accessible equipment, such as
kayaks and all-terrain wheelchairs, as well as staff assistance, is
available. In winter, the program also offers accessible cross-country
skiing and ice skating. Skilled instructors and volunteers provide
equipment, instruction, support, and safety.
“Our Universal Access Program is one of the
most innovative and groundbreaking programs in the nation,” said DCR Acting
Commissioner Pricilla Geigis. “It has helped make our state and urban park
recreation programs more inclusive, so that people with disabilities can
participate independently or with their friends and families in a wide
variety of activities.”
New this summer is accessible sailing on the
Charles River at Community Boating on the Esplanade near the
Hatch Shell. Hiking, cycling, fishing, canoeing, kayaking, and horseback
riding are also available at a number of locations across the Commonwealth.
For more information on DCR’s Universal
Access Program and a complete schedule of summer activities, visit mass.gov/dcr
or call 617-626-1294, 413-545-5353, or 413-577-2200 (TTY).
