Public service asks commission for volunteers to test ADA ramps; community raises sidewalk, scooter and crosswalk concerns

City of Columbus pavement staff asked the Columbus Advisory Commission on Disability for volunteer contacts to help field-test curb ramps and signalized crossings as part of the annual ADA ramp program.

Josh Levin, pavement program manager in the Department of Public Service, said his team handles ADA ramps in the right of way and is seeking volunteers to ride and evaluate ramps “to help us understand more, be better planners” for wheelchair users and other people with disabilities. He said staff will arrange field visits with volunteers so designers and engineers can see how ramps are used in practice.

Commissioners and community members offered practical feedback. Commissioner Janae Miller noted that tactile detectable warning surfaces (“tactile bumps”) on curb ramps are used by people who are blind “to distinguish that we're at a wheelchair ramp and that we're going down” and that teams testing ramps should include people with vision disabilities as well as wheelchair users.

Community speakers and commissioners raised several related accessibility issues: an unfunded sidewalk gap near Johnstown and Stelzer roads that affects access to a Franklin County Board of Developmental Disabilities office; frequent reports of shared electric scooters parked on sidewalks or on top of detectable warning surfaces, impeding safe passage; and interest in audio/cellular apps and other technologies that provide crossing information to people who are blind.

Commission staff said they will circulate contact information for pavement staff (Josh Levin and Ally Ganopoulos) to commissioners to coordinate volunteer participation. Zane Jones, city staff, said 311 reports for scooters are captured and can be tracked; he described recent changes to how scooter operations are managed (from multiple licensed vendors to a contracted model) and said the commission can request data on 311 responses and removals.

Residents from the Northland neighborhood described local problems with curb cuts, sidewalks and transit access near Arlington Avenue and Johnstown, and urged the commission to pursue solutions. A community member, Edward Andrews, offered to help convert an older commission document into accessible formats for visually impaired readers.

Commissioners asked staff to follow up with phased improvements and to report back on sidewalk funding and scooter-removal response times. Staff said they will email pavement contacts and post meeting materials to the city site and the commission’s Google Drive as part of transition support.