December 28, 2005

Nashville meets 2005 deadline; installs 4,300 curb ramps

As 2005 draws to a close, Metro Nashville public works officials are putting finishing touches on the 4,300 curb ramps which were part of an agreement worked out earlier between the city and the U.S. Dept. of Justice to settle a lawsuit. Despite the large number of ramps installed, both disability activists and officials say more remains to be done.

Tom Hopton, director of Nashville's Center for Independent Living, told reporters that sidewalks are "a huge issue for folks with disabilities."

The project cost the city $9 million, but hundreds of miles of sidewalks remain to be done yet. The city expects the work to take another decade.

"Sidewalks have been a centerpiece of Mayor Bill Purcell's pro-neighborhoods agenda since his first mayoral campaign in 1999," reported the Nashville Tennessean.

See Metro meets sidewalk deadline (Nashville Tennessean).

Also read our CloserLook feature, Dying In the Streets: Wheelchair Users Face Tragic Choices Nationwide.

Posted on December 28, 2005