Hi,

great website here! We plan a trip to Nedw York in August with our son who is sitting in a big wheelchair. I have heard that using the tube can be complicated because not all stations are really whellchair accessible. We instead should use the bus. Taking into account the traffic in New York City, won't it last hours to get from A to B or are there special tracks on the streets to be used by busses only? What about reastaurants in Manhattan, are the doorways normally accessible by wheelchairs? The one of our son has a weight of about 330 pounds. Do we have to have setas reserved in regular restaurants? I've heard that they are always full in the evening. Any other tips for visotors in wheelchair, special web-sites etc.?

Thanks a lot in advance
Peter

Considering that our infrastructure is quite old, New York is reasonably easily accessible for wheelchair users. But I would definitely advise you to avoid the subway. Even though some stations have elevators, they're frequently out of service, and -- even worse -- many are used as toilets! All of the city buses are equipped with wheelchair lifts that seem to work regularly.

There are separate bus lanes that help a bit, but buses are still subject to traffic congestion, and they can be pretty slow. The good news is that you can pretty much get all over town by bus.

Most restaurants are wheelchair accessible, too, but it's still a good idea to call ahead to make sure.

Big Apple Greeter is an organization of volunteer New Yorkers who love showing off their neighborhoods to visitors....AND IT'S FREE! They have a special Access Program that's a great resource for disabled travelers. Here's a link to BAG's Access Program page:

[www.bigapplegreeter.org]

Have fun planning!

I just sent an email to one of our regulars asking them to weigh in on this. They did a scooter trip with their mom, and used the subway quite a bit I believe.

The bus can be slow, but they all take wheelchairs. Only 2 wheelchairs can be taken by most of the buses,and wheelchairs have priority so the driver will make passengers move from the seats designated for wheelchairs. Just make sure you have change or a metrocard because no bills allowed. The subway is faster and you can use the mta.info website to check if an elevator is operational at a specific station. But the bus is probably easier. There are Taxi's now that take wheelchairs, but I can't imagine they are easy to actually hail. There may be information on this at nyc.gov. or when you are here cal 311, the city's info line. The concierge at the hotel may know of a good cab company that has wheelchair accessible vans.

Although most restaurants claim they are wheelchair accessible,if it is at all possible to kind of check the place out before hand, I recommend it. Some places can make it more than difficult to maneuver a wheelchair.

I am sure you and your son will have a wonderful time in NYC!!

oh here's a few links:

[www.nyc.gov]

[abilitytrip.com]

www.mta.info

I’m the one with the mom in a scooter (thanks for the shout, Salsa) You have some excellent advice already. We got around mostly on the subway, but I had the advantage of a day of reconnaissance before she arrived, so I could check out routes to where we wanted to go. Perhaps we were lucky, but we never encountered an inoperable elevator, or one that was too gross to use. We did have difficulty hailing a cab until we had mom wait a ways away, then zip up when the cab stopped. Greenwich Village was a challenge, not all curbs were cut. (3 years ago) And many stores have a step or two at the doorway.

We took one of the double-decker bus tours..No problem with loading the scooter. (I called ahead and asked) We checked it in the coat closet at Rockefeller Center...they even plugged it in. The point is that everyone was very gracious and accommodating. With a little bit of planning and calling ahead you should have a wonderful visit.

Thanks a lot for your very helpful advices!