#2 Comments on Draft Strategic Accessible Transportation Plan

Comment of Cure SMA looks to overcome barriers for wheelchair users

Because many people with SMA utilize a wheelchair or other device for mobility, it is imperative that all existing and future modes of transportation are accessible and operate to meet the needs of individuals with disabilities. Unfortunately, transportation barriers remain prevalent in transportation modes despite the mandate of and the progress since the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA).

This is a quote from the three-page comment of Cure SMA. First, about SMA and why people with that medical condition and their families would be very interested in the Draft Strategic Plan on Accessible Transportation.

Spinal muscular atrophy (SMA) is a group of hereditary diseases that progressively destroys motor neurons—nerve cells in the brain stem and spinal cord that control essential skeletal muscle activity such as speaking, walking, breathing, and swallowing, leading to muscle weakness and atrophy.

Hand lettering drawing of Dr. Suess
 quotation: "Unless someone like you cares
a whole lot, nothing is going to get better,
it's not.

Cure SMA is requesting that USDOT identify a point person - a disability czar, perhaps - who would be responsible for tracking performance toward achieving the goals of the draft strategic accessibility plan. The comment expresses concern that the lofty goals of the document actually receive USDOT attention and serious effort. This group is concerned about a beautiful plan sitting on a shelf. Cure SMA's specific issues revolve around: (1) Air travel problems regarding wheelchair storage, (3) driver licensing for people with disabilities, and (3) the high cost of retrofitting vehicles to allow for accessible driving.

In regard to AVs, "Cure SMA strongly supports the DOT’s efforts to ensure automated vehicles and other new technologies are designed with the needs of people with disabilities in mind." Accessibility of emerging transportation technologies is included in Cure SMA's 2021 priorities.

Comment of a graduate student addresses transportation for people with dementia

Here we have a brief, but thoughtful comment from a graduate student in community planning. The comment of Jonathon Katz specifically discusses the difficulties of a lack of transportation for people with dementia and those who care for them. The comment requests that the draft strategic accessibility plan provide a goal to expanding transportation access for this group, and, among other language in the comment that shows an educated vantage point about this issue, calls for more door-to-door transportation service for this frail population, while acknowledging the efforts of both the US Department of Transportation (USDOT) and the Department of Health and Human Service's Administration for Community Living's programs.

Hand lettering drawing: African-American
Man - Essential 

This comment also points to specific pedestrian safety programs in New York City and Oregon that, if implemented across the country, would substantially help seniors feel safe to walk in their own communities. Mr. Katz asks for separated bike lanes as a means of increasing the safety and comfort of older pedestrians whose pedestrian networks include mixed bike/ped infrastructure. One other request is  "I think more attention to community planning curricula, through the American Planning Association and the Association of Collegiate Schools of Planning, would be highly beneficial as well. "More information about Mr. Katz is available from his graduate school at the University of Maryland. He writes knowledgeably about transportation, disability, and food.