I get angry when attempts to make spaces more friendly for active transportation and public transit are opposed by people saying “what about disabled people?”

yes, what about disabled people? The ones who can’t drive and still want to leave their homes?

The ones who need wider sidewalks and less curbs for their wheelchairs? The ones who need wider bike lanes and more and different racks for their non-standard cycles? The ones who can’t walk along most arterial streets because of sensitivity to sound or air pollution?

The ones who need compact development so they can get around without getting exhausted? The ones who need plenty of public areas it’s comfortable and safe to rest in?

Cars are essential mobility devices for most people because we’ve built our cities badly and they will remain essential mobility devices for many for a long time to come.

What would it mean to support cars as assistive devices in an environment built for people instead of cars?

If we treated cars like the assistive devices they are to many people we’d have 80% less parking, parking wouldn’t be surrounded by curbs, and speed limits for cars in towns and cities would be limited to 20kph.

So when you say we can’t keep reduced parking at Stanley Park because “what about disabled people” but aren‘t fighting for curb cuts and accessibly pathways in the park, I don’t believe you.

Or when you say that we can’t keep the new bikeways in the park because “what about disabled people” but aren’t fighting for sea wall pathways that accommodate wheelchairs and trikes, I don’t believe you.

If your opposition to cycling infrastructure was about disabled people, you’d be fighting for cars with smaller footprints, easy to get in and out of, that had built in speed governors, good visibility, speed limits of 20kph, and were sharing space with cyclists.

You’d be fighting for less parking, compact development with accessible housing, strict noise, air, and light pollution rules, wide wide sidewalks with paving that didn’t rattle the bones of anyone with wheels, businesses to all have accessible entrances and seating and washrooms

Maybe you aren’t being disingenuous when you say “what about disabled people?” to fight cycling and pedestrian infrastructure. Maybe you’re well-meaning, but ignorant. If this thread was useful, please read more disabled people writing about moving + living in cities.