This letter refers to persons with so-called “standing impairment,” i.e., persons who are unable to stand up for a prolonged period of time. Included are expectant mothers in the later stages of pregnancy, certain persons with arthritis, including myself, and certain persons with back ailments.

I urge you to place on the docket of the Access Board, proposed regulations for improved access for persons with standing impairment. Especially, benches at the bus stops, especially bus stops on major thoroughfares, would be a godsend to us. This very afternoon, I had difficulty waiting for a bus on busy Georgia Avenue in Montgomery County, Maryland.

I urge you and the members of the Access Board to use your great influence to press for a “senior bench” project to facilitate handicapped access to mass transit for us. This would make a fine program for the new administration.

All the best,
Thomas L. Jones, Ph.D.