In this episode, Linda Hunt talks about being in the Driver’s Seat and;

• Her empowering tale of driving from a power wheelchair.
• The hidden challenges and hefty costs of wheelchair conversion vehicles.
• Introducing 'Betsy', her trusted travel companion.
• The often overlooked struggles with accessible parking.
• And more!

About the Host:

Linda Hunt Is an Award-Winning Accessibility Consultant, Speaker and Author. She is the CEO of Accessibility Solutions and an Advocate for all things related to accessibility. 

Linda is the Treasurer of Citizens with Disabilities – Ontario a member of the Rick Hansen Foundation Accessibility Professional Network and a Certified Community Champion on the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities and its Optional Protocol.  

Linda first became a person with a disability in 2004 since then she has been an active and engaging speaker to groups on a variety of accessibility topics. 

In addition, Linda is a business owner. Along with her husband Greg they have operated Grelin Apparel Graphics for over 30 years.

Connect with Us:

Website – www.solutions4accessibility.com

LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/company/accessibility-solutions/

Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/solutions4accessibility

YouTube - https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCRBqblsq_vxrKbdvEp2IOWQ

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Speaker 0:02

Welcome to the accessibility solutions podcast hosted by Linda hunt, an award winning accessibility consultant, speaker and author. With over 30 years experience in senior management roles and a deep passion for creating inclusive environments. Linda brings us unmatched expertise and credibility to our discussions join us as they explore transformative power of accessibility and inclusion in today's world. Through captivating conversations, Linda shares her wealth of knowledge provides practical solutions and sheds light on the latest trends and advancements in the field. Whether you're a business owner or disability advocate, or simply curious about the world of accessibility, this podcast is your go to resource. Get ready to unlock new perspectives, break down barriers and embark on a journey of empowerment. Are you ready to create a more inclusive world? Let's begin. Welcome to the accessibility solutions podcast.

Hi, everyone. Thanks for joining me this week, I want to talk about being in the driver's seat from the standpoint of someone who uses a power wheelchair. So people who use a power wheelchair are not able, obviously, for obvious reasons to drive a conventional vehicle. And yet, like me, I did not want to give up my independence. I wanted to still be able to drive myself around and at the time that I needed to get a wheelchair Van because I was no longer able to walk and go out and get into a regular vehicle. At that point in time. I said no, I'm not ready to give up driving. And so I had to start exploring what my options were going to be for somebody who can no longer use a conventional form of transportation but how to in fact buy a wheelchair accessible van so they're called wheelchair conversion vans and my wheelchair conversion van is a 2005 Pontiac Montana, which I purchased 14 years ago in 2009. And when I purchased it, I went looking for new or used as most people do when they think you're going to buy a new vehicle and the cost of a new wheelchair conversion vehicle is astronomical. So back in 14 years ago, I was probably looking at about 60 or $65,000 for a new vehicle compared to what I was able to purchase my used one for was about half that price. However, what's important to think 14 years ago is that a brand new minivan was probably in the neighborhood of $15,000. So as you can well imagine comparing $15,000 for a new minivan and here's me wanting to buy a minivan which is basically what I bought but a wheelchair conversion minivan then you know, then I had to look at what it is that we could afford because persons with disabilities want to drive obviously can't afford to pay up to say, three times the cost of a regular vehicle just in order to be able to drive so we'll call Betsy 2005 Pontiac Montana that I have, we call her Betsy so when I purchased Betsy, she was four years old. So she was a 2005. I purchased her in 2009 and she only had 22,000 kilometers on her which is actually very, you know, in terms of someone that's purchasing a used vehicle, it's very very low mileage. So here we are 14 years later, that's he is now 18 years old, but still only has 138,000 kilometers on her so in 14 years I've only driven I've only put 126,000 kilometers on Betsy and she's made two trips down to Florida and quite a bit of commuting around the province over that time. So what I didn't realize when I went out to find a Used Wheelchair conversion van so that I could still drive was that 80% of wheelchair conversion bands are actually manufactured with the passenger being the person with a disability which leaves only 20% of them that are actually designed for a driver who is the person in the wheelchair so that in and of itself finding a wheelchair conversion van difficult because there wasn't a lot of options to choose from in the used vehicle market anyway we found that see and purchase or and as I said I have been driving the wheelchair conversion band for 14 years now. Now my previous vehicle I had been driving with hand controls for the two years previous to that so starting in 2007 I started driving with hand controls but I got to the point where I could no longer get out and get in my regular minivan which had hand controls and I had to purchase a vehicle that I was going to be able to drive in with my wheelchair so We're gonna check conversion vehicles basically have the same chassis as a as their vehicle that is made by a manufacturer. However, the conversion is the is what they do aftermarket to convert that particular vehicle into a wheelchair conversion vehicle. So the conversion is actually lowering the floor of the van to allow for the fact that I'm now driving in a large power wheelchair in my case. And so the floor of my van is actually 10 inches deeper than the floor of a regular 2005. Pontiac Montana. And so what that means is that everything else is in the same spot. But there is 10 inches more of Florida in the vehicle. So everything is operated off a remote, I have a bifold ramp in my van. And so I will come up to the passenger side of my van and I push a button on the remote and the passenger door or the passenger sliding doors should say will open and out will fold the ramp and then I will go up the ramp into the man and lock into the driver's seat position. So where the driver's seat was, is now me sitting in my wheelchair, this requires a locking mechanism in the floor. And it also requires a bracket that's installed on the bottom of my wheelchair. So that blocks me into position so that my wheelchair is not going to move while I'm driving. And then I will use a switch on my dash to bring the ramp in and then to close the sliding door. So that's my vehicle like everyone else. So I'm going to start the vehicle lot and I use what's called push pull hand controls. And what that means is that I hold there on the left hand side and I pull down for the gas and I push in on that same lever for the brake. And those hand controls are actually calibrated to my pedals. So what I'm basically doing with these hand controls is that by pushing and pulling, that action is using the pedals to drive the vehicle. And the interesting thing is though, is when I originally got hand controls, I thought that would be a permanent switch in the vehicle, but it's not so in my vein, is a driver's seat and that driver's seat can be installed. So for example, when my husband is going to driver, we can put in the driver's seat, and he can drive with the pedals just like anybody would drive a normal vehicle. So for instance, the past winter, when we drove to Florida, he was in the driver's seat in the regular driver's seat driving with the pedals. And at that point, I was actually in that removed the passenger seat and me and my wheelchair were in the passenger side locked in with a call tie down straps. And one of the things that's really important to remember is that giving up so finding yourself with a disability and now you have to use a power wheelchair, not only if you're a driver, not only are you dealing with the fact that you're no longer able to walk, but you don't necessarily want to give up that independence of being able to drive yourself somewhere or in my case all over the place. I've commuted for business all over the province, we've made several trips to Florida and just the fact that we have our mobile home at the lake allows me to be able to drive to the lake every weekend all summer for so for six months of the year. So it's really important for persons with disabilities to be able to maintain that independence. And if they don't, they aren't able to attain that independence by in my case buying a vehicle that they can drive themselves for. As I said 80% of wheelchair conversion vehicles are actually made for transporting a person with a disability. So I've talked to lots of families where they've purchased a wheelchair accessible vehicle because they have to transport somebody with a disability, perhaps its child, so they had to transport their child around and it makes it very difficult if you don't have that to rely on accessible transportation service providers. So I think what I find that people are the most interested in is first of all, how does it work? You know, how do you get in? How do you you know, how do you still drive I get that all the time, do you you know did someone drop you off did back that I drive myself it's usually quite surprising to most people but what I really get across here is that a lot of times people with that drive wheelchair accessible vehicles obviously have accessible parking permits and accessible parking permits saw both a passenger or a driver and in my case, I'm the driver So the accessible parking permit belongs to the person and the fact that I'm the driver is displayed in the van window. But when I go to the parking lot, I can't park in a regular it called type two accessible parking stall. And that's primarily because even the width of an accessible parking stall does not allow me to deploy my ramp comes out about six feet, but I also need to obviously get to the bottom of the ramp and then you know, be able to turn around without running into the vehicle next to me. So I do have on the side door of the side passenger door of my van, an actual graphic that says wheelchair ramp do not park within three meters, because I really do need that, that three meters of space to deploy the ramp and get out. And so this is where type one they call them type one accessible parking stalls which are a wheelchair accessible spot with an access aisle that's beside it. And for any of you that probably seen a wheelchair spot, and then there's a hashed off, usually in yellow hashed off area beside it. That's what we call an access aisle. And the rationale for that is because it is a space that's needed for the person that's parking in that wheelchair accessible stall. And so I can't urge people enough to first of all, not park in in wheelchair accessible parking, which in the province of Ontario will cost you about a $300 fine if you don't have a permit, but just respecting the fact that if you do see something in my case that says wheelchair ramp do not park within three meters, it really is the fact that I need that three meters in order for me to be able to blame a ramp and either get in or get out. And I've had situations before where I've actually had to sit and wait in a parking lot or someone to come and move their vehicle because they parked too close to me. The other thing that happens to me quite often is that there is a shortage of wheelchair accessible parking spots in a parking lot. So if I go over to the local grocery store, and I can't find a wheelchair accessible spot, or in my case, type one accessible spot with the access aisle so I can deploy my ramp. That means I have to go and park quite aways out in the lobby take up two spots on Park on an angle, because that way I can hopefully guarantee that no one will park beside me and there'll be room for me to get my grandpa. So anyway, I just I thought that I would just have a little discussion with you today. What it is to be in the driver's seat even from a power wheelchair. As you know, you can always connect with me, my contact information is in the show notes. And until we chat again, keep your hands on the wheel. And if you're lucky enough to be in the driver's seat, just give some thought to the fact that persons with disabilities who are driving and they are in the driver's seat or they're not able to because they have someone drive them around. Just be aware that that's something that needs to be taken into consideration. Please don't park and block and access oil. We will talk to you again soon. Cheers.

Thank you for joining us on The Accessibility Solutions podcast hosted by Linda hunt. We hope these discussions have inspired you and provided valuable insights into the world of accessibility and inclusion. If you're ready to take the next steps in creating an accessible and inclusive environment. We invite you to book a personalized accessibility solutions consultation with Linda as an experienced accessibility consultant Linda will work closely with you to develop innovative solutions tailored to your unique needs and challenges. Together you'll navigate the complexities of accessibility regulations, explore inclusive design principles and implement practical strategies to ensure equal access for all Don't miss this opportunity to make a real difference. Visit our website at solutions for accessibility.com And that's the number four so solutions for accessibility.com scheduling a consultation today let's transform your space into an inclusive and welcoming environment for everyone Thanks again for listening to the accessibility solutions podcast Stay tuned for more empowering episodes as we continue our journey towards a more accessible world.