[tabi] Re: Fw: Nova 2010
- From: "djrogers0628" <djrogers0628@xxxxxxxxxxx>
- To: <tabi@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- Date: Fri, 26 Mar 2010 02:13:19 -0400
Well, I plan to stay on her ass; I won't wait for a response from her, but cite
more examples of people who ride public transportation and need things like
good sidewalks.
I've only just begun. Heck, I ought to put my writing skills to some good use.
What would be coos is if she could be convinced to follow one or more of us
around for a day; even if she does what I suggested, she won't see the
difficulties we are having here on Meridian Road.
Darla Who maybe should have run for City Commission
Darla J. Rogers, B.A. Social Science; M.S. Rehabilitation Counselor Education
djrogers0628@xxxxxxxxxxx
Home phone #: 850-329-7437
Cell #: 850-443-3571
Skype ID: wildflower0628
I suited up for the long walk back to myself...
....Ani DiFranco
----- Original Message -----
From: Chip Orange
To: tabi@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
Sent: Thursday, March 25, 2010 5:38 PM
Subject: [tabi] Re: Fw: Nova 2010
Very Very good Darla!!!
All of it true of course.
What I was amazed at however, was her "we're not going to modify our system
for a few riders ..." attitude. Someone needs to explain to her that A) it's
the law! not a suggestion! and B), it benefits everyone when we do so (those
who are elderly, walking with aids, or simply not always looking at every car
all the time). The examples of how beneficial curb-cuts for wheel-chairs have
turned out to be is just one example.
I could not believe she said anything like that; it's an attitude from 40
years ago.
Thanks for writing her.
You know, how is any person who can't drive for whatever reason supposed to
buy a house somewhere, based on it "being accessible to public transit", if the
city keeps changing and reducing the public transit areas served? It's
literally a moving target.
Chip
------------------------------
Chip Orange
Database Administrator
Florida Public Service Commission
Chip.Orange@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
(850) 413-6314
(Any opinions expressed are solely those of the author and do not
necessarily reflect those of the Florida Public Service Commission.)
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
From: tabi-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx [mailto:tabi-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx] On
Behalf Of djrogers0628
Sent: Thursday, March 25, 2010 5:17 PM
To: tabi@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
Subject: [tabi] Fw: Nova 2010
Importance: High
Here is what I wrote to Ms. Lightsey. Wonder if she'll even respond.
----- Original Message -----
From: djrogers0628
To: debbie.lightsey@xxxxxxxxxx
Sent: Thursday, March 25, 2010 4:57 PM
Subject: Nova 2010
Dear Ms. Lightsey:
I have been back in Tallahassee nearly 3 years, and I lived here 1.5 years
in 2004-2005. During these times, I have never known you to side with disabled
Tallahassee residents--especially the blind.
Due to circumstances beyond my control, I did not make it to last night's
City Commission meeting but know the people who spoke about the issues
regarding Nova 2010 did so eloquently, so I won't re-summarize what was said by
them. I am speaking for myself and my husband who is also blind.
We have lived at
2000 N. Meridian Rd.
for over 2 years. We were told this area is very accessible to blind and
visually-impaired persons. Nothing could be further from the truth.
Both my husband and I have used public transportation in a number of cities
to go to and from work and to recreate, run errands, visit friends, etc.
First there are no Audible Pedestrian Signals (APS) in this neighborhood,
so crossing Monroe at John Knox is a crap shoot, as it is very difficult to
hear the traffic patterns to let me or my husband know it is safe to cross. We
also cannot cross Meridian at Bradford or John Knox safely--we would need to
cross Meridian at Bradford Road to find the only sidewalks that are on Meridian
Road in our neighborhood.
Second, on our side of Meridian Road, there is virtually no sidewalk
between Bradford Road and John Knox. I have talked to both the city and county
about this issue and have been told that it is a state highway and thus not
under the jurisdiction of either entity to make sidewalk improvements to make
it safe to navigate around the neighborhood.
In addition to there not being sidewalks on this side of Meridian Road,
there is an uncovered culvert for storm run-off;; this forces us to stand and
wait for traffic to clear on Meridian Road before we step out in the street and
run several feet to get around it and back up on the curb out of Meridian Road.
As an educated woman, I believe you owe it to your constituents to learn
more about the issues on which you vote; you obviously, do not know anything
about the blindness community, or you would realize that being able to use Star
Metro effectively, would provide freedom we currently don't possess because
Dial-a-Ride reservations must be made 24 hours in advance, and it is very
difficult to make it on time if one has more than one appointment for the day.
Taxi fare has gone up considerably, and neither of us is currently employed.
Using Star Metro would allow for more spontaneous trips, though the current
Nova 2010 Plan does not give us any evening service.
I challenge you to leave your car at home--that would put less carbon
monoxide etc. into the air--and walk up to your bus stop and take Star Metro to
and from work for a week and ask Dial-a-Ride if you can become a temporary
rider to see what using that service is like.
Blind and visually impaired people do vote, and believe me, if there isn't
more willingness to really hear and understand our issues, we will encourage
all of our community and friends, coworkers and business associates to vote
with us.
We are not unaware of budget constraints, but, in the long run money would
be saved if blind and visually impaired people had safe ways to navigate the
city. You know we are not lying about the unsafe pedestrian situation in
Tallahassee. I know you saw the study done and saw the dismal rating
Tallahassee received.
So, in closing, I challenge you to "walk a mile in our shoes." Only then
can you cast educated votes that really represent the blindness community.
There are many more people with disabilities--many invisible--who live here and
need to get about the city using public transportation because they cannot
drive either.
Sincerely,
Darla J. Rogers, B.A. Social Science; M.S. Rehabilitation Counselor
Education
djrogers0628@xxxxxxxxxxx
Home phone #: 850-329-7437
Cell #: 850-443-3571
Skype ID: wildflower0628
I suited up for the long walk back to myself...
....Ani DiFranco
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