NEWS RELEASE

Brooklyn, NY – Urbahn Architects and contractor Gramercy Group have completed an extensive renovation of the Eastern Parkway-Brooklyn Museum subway station on the IRT Eastern Parkway Line for MTA Construction & Development (MTA C&D).

This station, serving subway trains on routes 2 and 3, was identified in the MTA 2015-2019 Capital Plan as one of a group of key stations throughout the New York City subway system that would be made fully accessible in order to better serve riders.

Many of the existing stations were constructed up to 100 years ago and predate the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA).

MTA Completes $29M Upgrade to Brooklyn Museum Subway Station full article

Energy Minister Karine Elharrar, who has muscular dystrophy, slams ‘scandalous conduct’ by COP26 organizers after being left outside; Bennett says she’ll join his convoy on Tuesday By TAL SCHNEIDER
1 November 2021

GLASGOW, Scotland – Energy Minister Karine Elharrar traveled to Glasgow for the UN’s COP26 climate conference on Monday, but was not able to enter the venue at all because it is inaccessible to people in wheelchairs.

For two hours, organizers refused to let her enter the large compound in the vehicle in which she arrived, Elharrar’s office said. They eventually offered a shuttle transport to the summit area, but the shuttle was not wheelchair accessible. The energy minister, who has muscular dystrophy, was forced to return to her hotel in Edinburgh after organizers refused to accommodate her.

Wheelchair-Using Israeli Minister Excluded from Glasgow Summit for Entire Day full article

Jonathan MacInnis
CTV News Atlantic Reporter
Published Oct. 18, 2021

PEGGY’S COVE, N.S. – About 100 people gathered near the postcard-perfect lighthouse at Nova Scotia’s Peggy’s Cove on Monday to mark the official opening of a viewing platform that had initially rankled some local residents.

The 1,300-square-metre deck was designed to improve access to the site and discourage sightseers from venturing onto the wave-washed rocks when storms roll in.

“This celebration recognizes the efforts of the community … and provides a new and inclusive way to experience Peggy’s Cove,” Susan Corkum-Greek, the province’s economic development minister, said in a statement.

Viewing Platform Opens at Peggy’s Cove in Nova Scotia With Eye to Improving Safety full article

New infrastructure funding should be tied to accessibility standards. Canada should be a leader in accessibility. September 28, 2021 by QUOI Media Group
By Luca Patuelli

People with disabilities have to fight for basic accessibility every day – and it’s exhausting! I live with a disability that requires me to use crutches to get around. I work as a dance educator with students that have various disabilities. I’ve learned first-hand that ‘accessibility’ is a word that is thrown around plenty but largely ignored in practice. It’s time this changed.

Why Do We Still Have To Fight for Basic Accessibility? full article

Carla Shynkaruk
Videojournalist CTV News Saskatoon
Published Tuesday, September 21, 2021

SASKATOON — Voting is a right every adult Canadian citizen has, but one Saskatoon man says his polling station wasn’t set up for him to enter in his wheelchair despite being led to believe it was accessible.

“The voter card said this site meets all 15 accessibility criteria for Roland Michener School,” Sikorski told CTV News.

The Elections Canada website outlines the criteria, which includes level access to the entrance.

However, when Sikorski arrived to vote on Monday, he quickly realized he couldn’t get into the school gym door because the threshold was about seven centimetres high.

Saskatoon Voter Frustrated Over Accessibility Issues at Polling Station full article

Nicola Seguin
CBC News, Aug. 11, 2021

For a blind person like Yvon Clement, obstacles are everywhere.

Everyday objects like sandwich boards, bike racks and sidewalk patios can pose a danger for those who use a cane to get around.

Patios that only have a rope-and-post barrier can pose an accessibility issue because the open space between the posts can’t be detected by cane.

“There’s nothing there to indicate that there’s something coming up,” said Clement, who has been blind since childhood.

“That’s how it’s dangerous to us, because we can trip over a table, fall over somebody, and there we go their food is on the ground.”

Accessibility Changes are Coming to Halifax Patios This Summer full article

The government’s investment in active transportation should benefit rural, accessible outdoor spaces Opinion by Benjamin Rempel, Joe Doiron
July 19, 2021

Before Catherine McKenna, minister of infrastructure and communities, announced her planned departure from politics, she outlined significant investments to support active transportation across Canada. At the time few took notice. But four months later, this infusion of funding has taken on new importance as Canadians flock outdoors to reclaim their physical and mental health.

The funding includes $400 million to retrofit and develop new pathways, bike lanes, multi-use trails and sidewalks. The money will also support the government’s commitment to create an active transportation strategy – a first for Canada. This is exciting news, to be sure. But before supports are enacted to get more Canadians walking and wheeling, the government must consider several key issues.

Supporting an ‘Active’ Recovery Means Improving the Accessibility of Outdoor Spaces full article

By Phil Carpenter , Global News
Posted July 16, 2021

Marie Pontini is a competitive bodybuilder who likes to keep active.

But she’s frustrated that she cannot always get to where she wants to. There isn’t always access for her wheelchair, which she uses because she has multiple sclerosis.

“New buildings, they have to be accessible,” she told Global News, “but there’s no guidelines that tell them how to make it accessible.”

Pontini pointed out that the problem of accessibility for people with reduced mobility in the city is nothing new and that for years they’ve been demanding improved access. According to her, more businesses and building owners could easily make the accommodations more effective by consulting experts – the people who need to services.

Montreal Advocates Call for Better Accessibility full article

A group of residents raised money for the equipment
Heidi Atter, CBC News
Posted: Jul 08, 2021

People who use wheelchairs can now take a dip in Last Mountain Lake at Regina Beach much more easily thanks to a group of residents who got together to raise money for equipment that makes the beach accessible.

The beach now has an access mat and “waterwheels,” a special buoyant wheelchair designed to be used in the water. The mat gives a stable surface for people in wheelchairs to use over the sand.

Five residents, including Janey Davies, raised the money to make it a reality. They started fundraising before the COVID-19 pandemic hit, then pivoted to online auctions, draws and a sports tournament.

Accessible Water Wheelchair, Access Mat Helping People Enjoy Regina Beach full article