'Inconvenient and unsafe': Woburn parking lot wheelchair ramp placement criticized

WOBURN, Mass. — When Jim Harrold saw pictures of the new parking lot in his hometown of Woburn, he noticed something right away, something most people probably wouldn't catch.

"This doesn't look right. How do you get out of your wheelchair van and then access onto the sidewalk?” he explained about his first question looking at the lot.

Harrold notices these things because for 10 years he drove wheelchair accessible vans for a rehab center in Sturbridge.

We checked the lot ourselves. There are three handicap accessible parking spaces, but only one ramp leading to the sidewalk and that ramp is in the corner of the lot. That means anyone in a wheelchair who needs to get onto the sidewalk has to venture out into the parking lot.

"If you’re going to come around the back of that van, there’s going to be fumes from other running vehicles in the winters, people looking for spots, backing up -- SUVs, forget it," Harrold said.

According to the Americans with Disabilities Act, "accessible routes must connect directly with access aisles."

Iin the Woburn lot, you can see the access aisle clearly painted with these white stripes, but instead of running right into a ramp, it actually runs into a curb, which is about nine inches high.

We took an illustration to City Hall showing the path from the parking lot to the sidewalk showing what the access ramp should look like, according to the Americans with Disabilities Act. City Engineer John Corey Jr. didn’t want to go on camera, but he said, “we’re looking into it, but if we have to change something we’ll change it.”

Corey said construction for the parking lot began back in November and there’s no official date for when it’s supposed to open. In the meantime, Jim Harrold said he’s keeping an eye on it.

"The way it’s built right now, it’s inconvenient and unsafe," said Harrold.

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