New York City, for all of its elevators, escalators, ramps and such, is not really the place to live when you are in a wheelchair or on crutches. If you are blind, you are even worse off, as none of the technological advances that are seen in other cities can be found here. Why is this?
I think that in terms of the blind, there just hasn't been enough of a push on their behalf. I spent some time one day watching a blind man navigate and was absolutely impressed by his abilities and self-reliance, but also horrified by several of the near misses that I saw. To me, it makes sense to arm crosswalks with some kind of sound emitter that can help protect this vulnerable population as they cross the street (at the least).
In terms of wheelchairs and crutches, the thing that really strikes me is subway access. To be sure, there are definitely elevators that lead down into most of the subways, but once you take that elevator, where do you go from there? How do you bridge the gap between the platform and the railcar? Clearly, something more needs to be done here.
Speaking of those elevators, I think that there should be some type of mandatory cleaning schedule, because those things absolutely reek. They smell like a combination of human waste, old food, dirt, rust, and machinery, and it is unpleasant to say the least. The handicapped population (differently abled if you will) already has enough issues getting around in New York City, and it doesn't make sense to subject them to even more hardships.
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