Real, universal access would benefit all society
First published in Hamilton Spectator June 18, 2000
The old clock goes off; the radio reports the QEW is a mess. Springing out of the shower, your eyes open wide. You remember that you have to go out of town today and return later for a meeting. Hopping in our cars, we meet thousands of other cars hitting the asphalt as we commute. The hectic lifestyle of this modern age demands a barrier-free environment, one into which we can pack anything and everything. We need to accomplish, to get things done and there is no time to waste on barriers. Our expectation is that there will be easy access to our communities. We move through each day not noticing the sidewalk configurations, the ramps that we use without a thought, those electric doors that we walk through and the list goes on and on.