Salem, Mass 2008-2009

My Hometown - Salem, Mass!

Salem, MA is a great tourist town, but since my hubby started to use a scooter, our visits back to my hometown have been frustrating.
As usual, I called two weeks ahead of time to make plans for our trip. I called Salem taxi companies and one of them said they had a van that could handle Gary's scooter. Now I thought that was taken care of...NOT!

We arrived in Salem and called Salem Taxi to take us to a local hospital to visit a friend. They told us that they did NOT have a van and could not handle the scooter. I explained that it can come apart and fit in the trunk and asked if they have a driver willing to take us. The driver came to the hotel and was happy to help us. So far, so good! He told us that he got off work soon and that there was not another driver who would take the scooter, but try Lynn taxi, the next town over.

When we got ready to leave the hospital, we called Lynn taxi and they told us that they only run until 6 p.m. and it was now 6:30 p.m....sorry.

So now we are at the hospital, about 1 1/2 miles from our hotel and it was getting dark. I was leery about walking back to the hotel in the dark, since I did not have my guide dog yet and only had a mobility cane.

We called the police to see if they had any ideas and the Sergeant made a few calls and could not find anything. He told us to stay there and he would send a car. We thought they would take a report or something and hopefully look some more into finding us some accessible transport.

Within five minutes, a police cruiser arrived. A big hulk of an officer got out of the car, took Gary's scooter apart, put it in the trunk and slammed the lid. We then climbed into the back of the cruiser (where you cannot open the doors from the inside) and got a ride back to the hotel. The Salem police to the rescue! Of course, if Gary was unable to transfer out of the scooter, we may not have been able to make this manuver!

When it was time to leave for Boston to catch our Amtrak train home, we now had to figure a new way to get to the station with scooter, me and my cane and our luggage. We had not yet found a solution and were talking to the bell captain about our woes.

Michael was his name and he volunteered to drive us the next morning all the way to the Amtrak station in Boston. Why does it always amaze us how great people can be! Thanks Michael! We had a hard time getting Michael to take a good tip from us to cover for his time and gas.

We stayed at the Waterfront Inn (978-740-8788), which is modern and very accessible as well as close to the downtown area and the wharf, where there are lots of shops.

It is very frustrating to me that the town I grew up in is not very welcoming to the disabled community. Being a popular tourist destination, you would think it would be better equipped to assist the disabled.

This trip was in 2008 and we have been back there in 2009 and there was no improvement that we could see. We will be going back within the next several months and will update you on how things go!

Since I have not been to Salem in 2 years, I have placed a call to City Hall to find out what they have to say and what resources they can provide for our next trip back. They assigned me a “Commissioner” as a liaison, who will contact me to discuss the disabled transportation issue in Salem. It has been five business days since I called and no return callback has been received yet. I will update you when I get more information!

Stay tuned…

Salem is a great destination, it just needs to work on accessible ground transportation. Once there, a lot of sites are within walking distance.

8/23/11 FOLLOW-UP: Had a conference call with two members of the disabilities commision of Salem. Andy LaPointe and Charley Reardon. They were very open to my concerns and will do some research on how to better transportation for visitors in wheelchairs. They would love any feedback that visitors have regarding improvements that need to be made to make Salem a better place for the disabled community.

If you have visited Salem and have comments, pleae call ADA coordinator Lisa Comarade at City Hall on 978-619-5600.

I did some research of my own and if you a member of Paratransit or "The Ride" in your area, you can have your eligibility letter faxed to the Boston office:617-222-6119 to get signed up OR call them on 617-222-5123. This process will allow you 21 rides as a visitor a year. Call them for more details.