Thanks to the passage of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) in 1990, and the subsequent Amendments Act of 2008, people in the U.S. are much more aware of issues that affect people with handicaps/disabilities than they were before. Anyone who enters a U.S. post office building has likely encountered a ramp or an automated door. Museums, libraries, schools, churches, and medical centers can also be excellent examples of ADA-compliant buildings. Although the ADA makes detailed information available for free on its website (https://www.ada.gov), making a building accessible can sometimes be a challenge. Available funds might be limited; and in some cases historic value must be preserved. Below are examples of many places that have successfully become accessible--and some that are not. Hopefully they are "in progress"!
TWITTER insert: Below is an invention to help people deal with steps. https://twitter.com/LiorSteinberg/status/1108043350299549696
An accessible church
A not-yet-accessible historical society. Disappointing!
An accessible historical society
A not-yet-accessible popular store. Not even its back door is accessible.
An accessible diner
Accessible public restroom
Accessible barbershop
Accessible dry-cleaner
This motel has an accessible cabin...
with a low threshold at the door...
and an attached porch with ramp.
AN OPTOMETRY OFFICE: The front door displays a...
sticker which might inspire you to look further. The...
ramp is along the side of the building, by the parking lot.
The ramp's surface is clear in summer and winter.
This CHURCH has a ramp...
that can look intimidating from below. Nearby is a...
smooth walkway that leads to a welcoming doorway.
A flower on the way to the church's door!
The new concrete ramp begins on a firm, packed-gravel surface...
...and it ends at the top with a low-threshold doorway. Yay!
THRESHOLDS & DOORS: Here is an easy cafe entrance, on the same level as the sidewalk outside.
The back door to the same cafe is easy to exit.
Here is another ground-level restaurant entrance.
This retail business also has a steps-free doorway.
This sign appears on a RESTAURANT'S front window, near the sidewalk. (A...
phone number is posted too?) One step needs to be scaled.
Here is the ramp that employees set out temporarily upon request.
In a re-purposed barn, this view looks up the ramp....
Looking down at the ramp....
The barn has a smooth threshold to the indoor party space.
Space for a ramp is found beside a public building.
A wooden platform leads to the back door of another public building.
MOVIE THEATER
Mostly good reviews! Two accessibility gripes: 1) when wheelchairs and scooters are limited to the front row, looking up can give you a sore neck.
And 2) when the accessible floor space is sloped (not level), it's harder for a person on a scooter to sit back & relax --instead of pitching forward.
OOPS This step appears at the top of a ramp to a massage therapy office.
OOPS These steps block access to a motel's complimentary, serve-yourself breakfast that is supposedly available to all overnight guests.
How to get upstairs (no elevator):
This lift is parked at ground level, with side-flaps that lower to become ramps.
After the rider rolls onto the lift, curved bars come down for safety. Then the side-flaps fold up again. Up it goes!
An ADA sticker would be nice here!
A public school's accessible door has a very slight ramp which smooths the ride to the threshold. Nice!
A medical office's new ramp looks great except for the hard ice patch at its base which blocks wheels. OOPS!
A community building has this smooth stone path...
that leads to a ramp, and then to this porch and door. Voila!
Inside the lift at a public school.
A similar platform lift is shown at www.bruno.com.
See other lifts/"elevators": https://www.garaventalift.com/en/products.html AND https://www.accessible-wheelchair-lifts.com
Another MUSEUM ramp: long but apparently effective.
A library's elevator is great EXCEPT when a book cart is stored in it.
A wide ramp for shopping...
...at a marine supplies store.
A ramp at a natural foods store.
At a big grocery store: automatic doors & a flat threshold.
At a school, a new entryway features aluminum metal grating for its surface.
At this pizzeria, ustomers step up (from the right) or use the ramp (from the left). Gray areas among the red bricks help mark where to walk/stroll.
A restaurant's smooth brick walkway merges with an asphalt parking lot.
An accessibility solution for this business could be: a mini ramp up that one step.
This MINI aluminum ramp makes for a smoother ride up and over this indoor/outdoor threshold.
SOME SIGNAGE...
SEEN ALONG...
...THE WAY!