For people using wheelchairs, consumer access to restaurants and gas stations expands business opportunities for the owners. To deny economic access to people with disabilities weakens our economy and our community.
Recent observed events in the business area demand me to ask this question: Does America want people using wheelchairs to be consumers?
While visiting New York City, I saw a man in a wheelchair unable to enter a restaurant because he lacked the strength to open the door. Customers entering and leaving the restaurant seemed impervious to his situation. Minutes passed as I watched them refuse to offer him any assistance. Finally, I walked over to him and said, “I need coffee. Will you join me?”
“Yes,” was his reply as we entered. Inside, the salespeople asked me, “What does he want to drink?”
My reply was, “Ask him.”
We drank our coffee, and while doing so I learned that he experiences these situations frequently. When I asked the management, “Did you know he was having trouble entering your restaurant?” I was told emphatically, “No.”
I told the management, “There is a solution to this dilemma. Have a bell installed outside so people requiring assistance can receive it.”
When asked, “Do you know of a company who can help us?”
I replied, “Inclusion Solutions at www.inclusionsolutions.com.”
Inclusion Solutions sells wireless BigBell products and other communication products. When the BigBell is mounted outside of a storefront and accompanied by directional signage, customers can ring the bell and an interior chime rings to alert employees that a customer needs assistance. The price for the bell is $129 for a distance up to 100 feet and $199 for 600 feet.
Patrick Hughes, the founder of Inclusion Solutions, says, “Big Bell is the first communications system that allows customers with disabilities to request assistance with entry.”
We left the restaurant hoping it would invest in the technology that allows employees to know when a person with a disability requires assistance.
Two days later, I was pumping gas at a gas station when a van stopped in the next aisle. The driver wheeled himself out of the van and started toward the pump. He pulled out a credit card and tried to insert it in the slot. He couldn’t reach it. He looked around, but he could not see anyone to help him. When I asked if I could assist him, I was waved off. He wheeled himself to the door to the store, but he could not open the door because there was a step between his chair and the door. An employee working in the garage allowed him to enter the garage and then pulled the door open for him to go inside. The wheelchair rider gave his credit card to the cashier. Exiting the store the same way he entered, he pumped his gas and left. There was anger in the man’s tone and manner as he pumped his gas.
The customer in the wheelchair would have been well served if the gas station had a bell to notify the cashier he needed assistance, if the gas station had a portable ramp for wheelchair consumers, (portable ramps cost from $200 to $600) and if the pump’s credit card slot had been lowered. There are also signs that tell people with disabilities the accessible pumps and hours of service. Inclusion Solutions sells the signs.
More than two million Americans are wheelchair users, and 400,000 people drive an adaptive vehicle. It is good business to ensure they have access to stores, restaurants, and services. The low-cost technology affords businesses the opportunity to expand their customer base. People with disabilities need to educate community businesses on low-cost accessible technology. Once installed, consumers with disabilities will reward the business through their patronage.
John Williams has been writing about assistive technology for more than 25 years. A sample of his book Assistive Technologies: Creating a Universe of Opportunities for People with Disabilities can be seen at www.atn-ctcf.org.
