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I am in my 20s, and my leg is in a walking cast due to a sports injury. I exclusively use public transit here in the DC area. (Even if I owned a car, I could not drive it because the cast is on my right foot).
I find that one of the hardest parts of getting around on the Metro is getting people's attention to give me their seat before the train starts moving, because they are wearing headphones (standing on a moving train is very hard and very painful for me). One I get their attention, people generally give me their seat because the cast makes it clear that I have an injury. I dont know if people would be as responsive once I switch to wearing a smaller brace till the injury fully heals.

However, not all Metro riders have been helpful. Since getting in this cast:
-Twice I was told (once yelled at) for taking a handicap seat on the bus by (middle aged) people who thought the seat was reserved for the elderly only.
-A man entered a bus carrying a young toddler. All the handicap seats were taken by elderly people and me. He aggressively told me to get out of my seat because he had a baby in his arms. I told him I couldn't stand because I had a cast on, and he replied "yeah, thats nice, we'll I've got a baby!" Eventually someone in the back of the bus gave the man their seat.
-A man was sitting behind me on the metro playing his music loudly. I asked him to turn it down. He spent the rest of the ride cursing at me and insulting me and telling me to move if I did not like his music. I cannot walk on a moving metro, and told him this. He kept cursing and telling me that was my problem. None of the other local passengers said anything.

I have found that on the buses the drivers can be the key to an accessible experience. Some drivers do not start driving again until I have found a seat, which makes all the difference. I have seen drivers tell passengers that the bus will not move until someone gets up for the elderly or handicapped. This places pressure on people to get up, and really makes a difference (nobody wants to bear the wrath that comes with making an entire bus full of people late). WMATA should make this the policy for bus drivers.

by MS on May 15, 2012 1:51 pm • link • report