Accessible NYC

Arlene’s Grocery used to be a Puerto Rican bodega, but it and a neighboring butcher shop were turned into a bar and live music venue in 1995. It hosts a variety of musical acts, although punk and hard rock are the most common. Wheelchair users can enter with the red wheelchair ramp at the front, [...]

If you’re a wheelchair user, you can get in The Wild Goose Irish pub on Staten Island… … but you’d better not drink too much Guinness, because this is what they call a bathroom. It’s also rather dimly lit, so people with low vision or using sign language might have trouble seeing. On the plus [...]

Disabled advocates in New York City have invested a lot of time and energy in getting the city to make its infrastructure accessible, and yellow cabs are a huge bone of contention. Unlike London, where black cabs were made accessible decades ago by royal decree, the city has fought every step of the way to [...]

The Staten Island Ferry is one of the best ways to experience New York City, for able-bodied and disabled people alike. You get fabulous views of Manhattan’s skyline, the Statue of Liberty, and harbor traffic, the ride is smooth and accessible; and best of all, it’s free!

Reuters reported yesterday that the Statue of Liberty was evacuated after a sensor detected smoke coming from the elevator motor.  Lady Liberty was reopened an hour later as no smoke or heat was observed, and the sensor judged to be faulty.  Habitual elevator users familiar with faulty equipment were only slightly relieved!