I have heard, more than once, "Why do I need to change anything--we have no customers in wheelchairs." There are two issues present with this misconception.
First, and obviously, there might be no customers in wheelchairs because the business (or organization) is not accessible to wheelchairs. Second, there are other disabilities to consider when beginning the process of evaluating the accessibility of a business and bringing a business into compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA).
A small hotel decided to make a room "disabled friendly." Presumably this meant to bring one room into compliance with the ADA. The owner thought she did a great job: she ramped the large step in front of the room door, put lever handles on the outside door and bathroom door, put the bathroom door on offset hinges to allow a wheelchair to enter, replaced the existing lamp with a touch lamp, put grab bars in the bathroom, and changed the bathroom sink faucet from knobs to lever function. Great, for people in wheelchairs, except that the ADA isn't limited to people in wheelchairs.
Are there audible fire alarms for a guest with a vision impairment? Braille signage? Visual alerting devices to warn guests with hearing impairments of smoke or fire, or let the guest know the phone is ringing? Is there closed-captioning on the tv for a guest with a hearing impairment?
The ADA can be overwhelming for a small business owner who wants to comply but does not know what to do beyond removing the steps at the front door. Technical assistance for businesses can be found at www.ada.gov.
