[il-talk] Bells for Blind on Chicago Transit

[Rob]

We don't need more bell sounds just better mobility training for blind.

-----Original Message----- 
From: Kelly Pierce
Sent: Thursday, November 01, 2012 10:46 PM
To: NFB of Illinois Mailing List
Subject: [il-talk] Bells for Blind on Chicago Transit

Below is a news release from the Chicago Transit Authority.  It
describes a new bell for the blind to signal when doors are opening on
the newfangled CTA rail cars.  I have spoken with Steve hastalis about
this recently.  Steve is a member of the NFB and serves on the CTA ADA
advisory committee.  Steve said it stemmed from a single concern from
ADA advisory committee member Greg Polman of the Chicago Lighthouse.
Greg uses a guide dog and does not travel with a white cane.  The
committee has two other members with vision impairments. Neither
committee chair Amy Serpe, who represents the Chicago Public Schools,
nor Doreen bogus, who represents the City of Chicago, use a travel
aide of any kind, including a white cane.  Although Steve raised
objections, he said these other members with visual impairments who do
not use white canes encouraged other committee members to quickly
approve the proposal without research or investigation.  Steve said
that CTA representatives have not met with NFB members to solicit
feedback about this service enhancement or take a ride on the system.
Steve does not believe that any outreach has occurred to the ACB
Chicago chapter either.  I am outraged and offended that such a
substantial change is taking place without significant involvement
from the blind community.  It is not required by the Americans with
Disabilities Act. Audible door closing signals are required by the
ADA. Debbie Stein and Steve have been extensively involved in
transportation issues.  Karyn Campbell along with her husband Ray of
the ACB have been active in transportation access issues for many
years.  Both the ACB and NFB have been active in Chicago for decades.

I would like to discuss this with other NFB members at an upcoming
Chicago chapter meeting.  I have ridden on these rail cars with their
quiet ride and gentle braking and acceleration. I never felt that door
opening was undetectable to a blind person, particularly when a white
cane was used to touch the doors.  Additional sound could be
distracting and disruptive rather than helpful.  Further, Steve said
the blind bell for door opening will have the same sound as the chimes
for door closing.  There will be no spoken announcement that doors are
opening, as occurs on the Metro system in Washington, DC.  The blind
bell seems intrusive and unneeded at worst and confusing and
ill-designed at best.  I feel powerless and believe government is
turning away from the real supports for independent blind people.  I
look forward to working with other NFB folks on this.

Kelly



CTA Adds Additional Door Chime Feature to Newest Rail Cars to Assist 
Passengers


10/11/2012


The Chicago Transit Board today approved an important upgrade to its
newest 5000 series rail cars that will benefit visually impaired
customers. Chimes will be added to let passengers know when doors are
opening, in addition to the chimes that now play when doors are
closing. The CTA decided to provide the additional audio cues to
assist passengers after receiving feedback from customers who
indicated they had trouble locating train car doors from the platform.

“This issue was brought to our attention because the new and improved
rail cars were so quiet, some visually impaired customers had
difficulty hearing the doors opening,” said CTA President Forrest
Claypool. “The valuable feedback led us to seek the door chime
modification to ensure the new ADA features we’re providing on the
5000 series work in the best possible way for our customers.”

The modification requires a software change that will be made to the
entire purchase order of 706 rail cars. All new cars currently in
Chicago will undergo a retro-fit, which will not impact operations.

The change order for the door chimes are at no additional cost to the CTA.
Bombardier Transportation, a recognized leader in the manufacturing of
mass transit vehicles, provides the 5000 series cars. To date, 126
cars have been delivered and are currently deployed on the Green and
Pink Lines

The total cost of the rail cars $1.137 billion, which is funded by two
CTA bond issuances backed by sales tax receipts. The remainder is paid
for by $150 million in federal funds.

# # #

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