Curb Cuts!

This topic is a little outside my normal set of concerns, but during and since our “Snowzilla” storm it’s been on my mind.  Then this morning I heard a friend who gets around by motorized chair being interviewed on the radio, and I decided to do a short post about “snow mountains” at intersections.  The subject on the radio was about people who rely on wheels to negotiate the sidewalks, but the fact that street plows have been piling snow (now ice!) at intersections that residents often have already shoveled is an issue that affects everyone – wherever we are on the different-abilities spectrum.  As was pointed out, this has prevented many folks from even getting out of their house, but it also has regularly forced schoolkids, workers, retirees and other people, of all abilities, into the line of traffic.  We should never have another snowstorm in which street plows systematically block the route for those who need to use the sidewalk.  I hope Susie Cambria (http://susiecambria.blogspot.com/p/about-me.html) has written about this, or will.  I also hope the mayor (eom@dc.gov) next time will not only berate citizens for getting in the way of the plows, but also make sure plow drivers know to push the snow where if won’t consistently block citizens’ access to the sidewalk.  City council members  (www.dccouncil.us) please also pay attention!

Another problem “Snowzilla” caused was the cancellation of the January 29 council hearing on the “Citizens with Intellectual Disabilities Civil Rights Restoration Act of 2015,” which I wrote about in my last posting.  The best way to be sure you learn when the hearing is rescheduled is to watch the council website (see above) or to let Erin Leveton in the State Office of Disability Administration (erin.leveton@dc.gov) know you’d like to be notified.  Also, if you’re interested in testifying – in person or in writing – contact Malcolm Cameron (mcameron@dccouncil.us).  You may be tired of reading about this bill (although it’s important!), so you should know I’m also working on some posts that deal with more day-to-day concerns.  Keep watching this space, and I hope we all will soon have emerged safely from the snow and ice!