Your guide to NYC's public proceedings.
PUBLIC TESTIMONY
Testimony by Evan Yankey, Advocacy Director of Brooklyn Center for Independence of the Disabled, on Intro 1138 and Daylighting
1:55:39
·
173 sec
Evan Yankey, representing the Brooklyn Center for Independence of the Disabled, strongly supports daylighting to improve street safety for pedestrians, especially those with disabilities. However, he expresses concerns about the current implementation of daylighting in NYC and urges amendments to Intro 1138 to address accessibility issues.
- Calls for specific consideration of people with disabilities and Access-A-Ride users in sections D, E, and F of the bill
- Emphasizes the need to accommodate vehicles transporting passengers with disabilities for drop-offs and pick-ups
- Recommends that DOT be required to respond promptly to accessibility complaints and track implementation issues related to daylighting
Evan Yankey
1:55:39
Afternoon.
1:55:40
I'm Evan Yankee, advocacy director for Brooklyn Center for Independence of the Disabled, a disability led not for profit that has provided services to the disability community and advocated for the independence of people with disabilities since 1956.
1:55:52
We strongly support daylighting as a practice to make the streetscape safe for pedestrians including disabled New Yorkers and visitors.
1:55:59
While the increased use of daylighting will make the streets safer for everyone, it is a particularly valuable way of reducing the risk to wheelchair users who now are obscured by parked vehicles.
1:56:09
Daylighting will increase their ability to see vehicles on the road and for drivers to see them.
1:56:14
We do have some concerns with the implementation of daylighting in New York City as it has occurred so far and urge the council amend Intro eleven thirty eight to take them into account.
1:56:24
Concrete barriers have been known to be installed in locations that block access to curb cuts, ramps, and public plazas for people with disabilities.
1:56:32
Implementation of daylighting without considering street accessibility is an impediment to safety.
1:56:37
For example, our offices on 25 Elm Place in Downtown Brooklyn have concrete blocks installed in a small daylighting space on a single lane, one way street.
1:56:45
The implementation does mean not only that access ride vehicles are unable to drop off passengers with disabilities at the curb cut, but that the person with a disability dropped off in the middle of the block will be forced to travel into the single stream of traffic to get to a curb cut.
1:56:58
Our office building includes several organizations serving people with disabilities and can have between 40 to 60 people who use Access Right in the office on a given day.
1:57:06
The barriers to access and dangerous choices that people with disabilities are forced to make because of this single damaging implementation of daylighting would be more widespread if protections for accessibility are not written into this bill.
1:57:16
Before moving forward with Intro eleven thirty eight, we urge that sections D, E, and F be amended to specifically include consideration of people with disabilities and accessoride users.
1:57:26
We also urge the bill be revised to recognize that accessoride vehicles and other vehicles transporting passengers with disabilities to drop off and pick up passenger must be accommodated.
1:57:36
These vehicles are required to provide door to door service to people with disabilities, and many people with disabilities are unable to travel to alternate locations on the block to chase a vehicle.
1:57:45
Daylighting implementation that blocks off safe and proper spots for these vehicles to do pickups and drop ups will make New York City streets significantly worse for everyone.
1:57:55
Finally, we urge the bill require the Department of Transportation both respond promptly to complaints of access caused by daylighting and to track accessibility issues with implementation.
1:58:04
Because daylighting offers such significant benefits for pedestrian safety, including the safety of people with disabilities, we would not want our concerns about this bill to be used to prevent daylighting from being pursued.
1:58:17
We merely ask that accessibility considerations be moved to the forefront of implementation considerations and we believe this change will improve safety for all on the street.
1:58:27
Thank you for the opportunity to testify today, and we look forward to working with you on many of these issues.