Pocono News Section

Curb Upgrades Slated for Williamsport Area

Curb Upgrades Slated for Williamsport Area - Thursday, September 24, 2009 at 5:18PM EST

Reported by: Jeremy Deebel
Thursday, Sep 24, 2009 @ 05:18pm EDT
Williamsport, Lycoming County-

Williamsport's disabled population will soon be able to take advantage of safer sidewalks.

James Derr of Williamsport requires a special chair to help him get around. So hearing about the upgrades planned for downtown curbs was welcome news to him.

Derr noted, "It's been needed. There are a lot of sidewalks that if you get up on, they're not graded at the crosswalks, and you can't get down off the sidewalk."

Crews will spend the next month and a half adjusting curbs in the vicinity of the Market Street Bridge.

Funding for the project will come from the state and federal government.

PennDOT Project Manager David Wise said, "It's basically a safety-type thing for people in wheelchairs and the blind."

The work will ensure that the curbs are compliant with the Americans with Disabilities Act. Crews plan to fix up dozens of sidewalks in Williamsport and South Williamsport.

Wise explained, "Some of the existing sidewalks, the slopes on them weren't up to standards. And the standards have changed, so we're bringing them up to the current standards."

Workers will also be adding detectable warning surfaces to assist blind pedestrians navigating through the area.

Wise noted, "As they go across the sidewalk, they would feel and hear, they would know that a road's coming up. The sidewalk's ending and they're going to be approaching a street."

Disabled people here believe the changes will be very beneficial as they go about their daily lives.

Derr added, "I'm seeing more and more chairs in the area, so it's going to help a lot."

Officials are urging people to use caution near the construction sites. Work is expected to be completed on the project by early November.