[Nfbf-l] Article: Local volunteer has Braille added to bus stops

[Sherri]

Dwight sent me the following article, which I am passing on.



From: Phyllis.Dill at dbs.fldoe.org
Sent: 10/28/2013 2:11:59 P.M. Eastern Daylight Time
Subj: FW: Article: Local volunteer has Braille added to bus stops



FYI  Refer to the following article in the Tallahassee Democrat.



Article text below link.

http://www.tallahassee.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=2013310280022



Local volunteer has Braille added to bus stops

Written by Arek Sarkissian II Democrat staff writer

Oct. 27 tallahassee.com



Four years ago, StarMetro announced a plan to do away with its hub-and-spoke 
route system in favor of a decentralized network using 40 stops as transfer 
points.



The move would make Tallahassee's bus system more efficient and perhaps 
decrease its reliance on the city budget. But the plan included nothing for 
members of the visually-impaired community who rely on Braille signage to 
keep up with bus schedules.



John Plescow found no use for StarMetro's new system, which went online in 
July 2011, and at the suggestion of his fellows in the blind community, he 
volunteered his time to make a difference.



"It served me much better the old way," Plescow said. "They really opened up 
Pandora's Box with the new system. It was much more difficult to navigate."



Plescow brought in the help of Lighthouse of the Big Bend, Ability1st and 
the city to find a roughly $24,000 federal grant to purchase and install 
Braille plates on bus stops across the system so blind people can determine 
route numbers and a text code for schedules.



Plescow's work earned him the Paula Bailey Inspirational Award at the 
Lighthouse Dining in the Dark event on Oct. 13. The award is given to people 
who inspire others, are visually impaired and are residents of the 11 Big 
Bend counties the organization serves.



City transit planning manager Brian Waterman said the StarMetro C.K. Plaza 
was used as the main transfer point in the former route system and was 
outfitted with Braille placards to meet federal Americans with Disabilities 
Act standards. The newly-adopted system turned former stops into transfer 
points and the ADA did not require them to have signage for the visually 
impaired, Waterman said.



"Braille is not common at bus stops," Waterman said. "You have to do it so 
it's readable and also, bus stops are prone to damage or being removed."



Plescow said he was determined to come up with a solution and found former 
assistant city manager Jay Townsend willing to help.



"It sort of became my second job," Plescow said. "But it was something that 
needed doing and it was a distraction from everything else."



Plescow said the signs have been ordered and should be installed in the next 
six months. He applauded the city's initiative to make StarMetro the first 
public transit system to equip all stops with Braille signage.



"Everyone likes to be recognized and told, 'hey you're doing something good,' 
 " Plescow said. "But the true reward is that there is going to be Braille 
at every bus stop. That is a plum for Tallahassee and a very positive 
 thing."

Sherri

Character is the side of yourself you choose to show the world.
Integrity is what you do, what you say and how you act when you think no one 
is paying attention.
Sherri Brun
NFBF Newsline Chair
flmom2006 at gmail.com