From the intro to a story in the Topeka, Kan.,
Capital-Journal:
Traffic hums along at 40 mph at S.W. Huntoon and McAlister on Topeka's west side, and Don Robinson (pictured) looks for his break.
Robinson's head darts back and forth, scanning traffic on S.W. Huntoon from the east and west, as he looks for a clearing so he can cross the five-lane street in his motorized wheelchair.
On this Tuesday morning, he only needs to wait about a minute before he sets sail.
Other days, the wait is much longer, and with heavier traffic, crossing the street is much more dangerous.
Such is the life for Robinson and others in wheelchairs who not only have to contend with traffic but also whatever sidewalk conditions they are dealt.
Robinson, 58, who lives at Luther Place Apartments, 4900 S.W. Huntoon, says motorists don't always look for people in wheelchairs when they cross the street.
He said he was hit by a car a couple of years ago when crossing a street near Kaw Area Technical School in the 5700 block of S.W. Huntoon. He suffered minor injuries, but his $13,000 wheelchair was a total loss.
"No, I don't feel safe at all," he said. "Especially at an intersection where people can turn right on a red light — or those where people can turn left at a green light after the traffic has cleared — because all they're looking for is if the traffic has cleared."
Robinson and others in wheelchairs say navigating around town is even more difficult in neighborhoods that don't have sidewalks.
Complicating matters, some sidewalks may not be equipped with curb cuts, making going from one block to the next a difficult — if not impossible — proposition.
"On some of the main streets, they don't even have sidewalks," Robinson said. "You come out west here, and they don't have sidewalks on 6th or 10th streets between Gage and Fairlawn."
Then there are streets like S.W. Huntoon, where Robinson can tool along quite nicely in his wheelchair, only to find the sidewalk ends abruptly.
"Then it'll pick back up in a half a block," Robinson said. "What's that all about?"
When sidewalks come to an end, people in wheelchairs may have no other option but to travel through a business parking lot, a risky proposition given all the backing up that vehicles do in them.
Another option, and sometimes the only alternative, is for people in wheelchairs to go in the street — something Robinson said caused a police officer to stop him one day.
"He told me it was illegal to ride my wheelchair in the street," Robinson said. "I told him: 'Where else am I supposed to ride? There's no sidewalk here.' "
Robinson said the officer let him go with the admonition to "be careful."
Though not at the top of the city's priority list, sidewalks do command a fair share of attention. For more than 25 years, new subdivisions and construction have been required to have sidewalks installed.
Additionally, work has been done in recent years to bring sidewalks up to code with Americans with Disability Act requirements.
But more work remains to be done.
Many neighborhoods still don't have sidewalks and may never get them.
By city code, homeowners are responsible for the upkeep of sidewalks in front of their property.
While many people know sidewalks only through the windows of the car they drive, Robinson and others who use wheelchairs know them much more intimately.
From the intro to a story in the Topeka, Kan., Capital-Journal:
