To The Editor,
I think Main Street parking in Lachute is for the birds.This new plan of reducing parking to inner (left hand side) of Main Street is proving dangerous for handicapped people.Consider a handicapped van with a side door ramp.You park it in the left hand parking ,lower the ramp right into the traffic lane. A disaster waiting to happen.! Yes,there is off street parking at the back of many businesses,but there are no wide handicapped slots.
So, if you have exited your van with your wheelchair, rolled down the lane to Main Street to do your business, returning only to find someone has parked snugly (cheek by jowl) beside you, you have no place to lower your ramp and roll into the van. God only knows how long it will be before they return. Maybe they parked and went with someone else to Montreal or St Jerome. Also, not all handicapped people are in a wheelchair. Some people have trouble walking. The 350 to 400 feet that they have to walk from these rear parking spots is just too much for them. Or someone may have very poor eyesight. These lanes to Main Street are often cracked and heaved/I have witnessed some very fragile people using canes ,walkers etc.
There are no benches along the way to rest. There weren’t many handicapped parking spots along Main Street as it was, but these people were able to get to banks,pharmacies,optomitrists etc and look after themselves. Now,I am not asking for all right-hand parking to be opened, as they have their reasons, but for God’s sake, move the barriers, flower boxes ,etc which are currently fencing off the handicapped spots ! Is it even legal to do away with handicapped parking ? It isn’t a favour. It is a right of the handicapped.
Betty Cleary, Wentworth
