Handicap Lifts |
Handicap lifts are intended to provide the physically challenged person access to another level or entry into a vehicle. A wheelchair lift or platform lift is a common type of lift that is commonly installed in handicap buses for sale. The bus builder installs the powered device so that it can raise a wheelchair while the occupant is seated and then put them into the handicap bus. There are some legal regulations on the use of handicap lifts that vary depending on the country you are in. For example, the Americans with Disabilities Act require companies involved in public transportation to have operational wheelchair lifts. The inoperability of the handicap lift can be used as a basis to pull out the wheelchair lift bus from service as long as it will not disrupt the normal operational flow of transportation.
Handicap lifts come in various forms and sizes. Regardless which type it is, it has undoubtedly contributed much to improve handicap accessibility in public transportation. Some of the important effects of using wheelchair lifts in the transportation sector are outlined below.
1. In the same way that handicap lifts like stair lifts, platform lifts, or wheelchair lifts has made homes more handicap friendly and accessible, introduction of the same adaptive mobility equipment has provided the needed innovation to make the transportation sector more responsive to the needs of the disabled.
2. The use of wheelchair lift has affected both public and private transportation. Commercial bus companies make sure that all their drivers are trained in the use of handicap adaptive mobility devices like the wheelchair lift. In public transportation, drivers are trained not only in using the lift but also in establishing the rights of the disabled passengers. By putting the handicap lift in the front door of the bus, passengers without disabilities are forced to offer their seat to the disabled passenger.
3. The installation of handicap lifts in new and used buses for sale have prompted an increase in bus sales. This is because more and more organizations are using handicap buses to service their handicap members. Such as in the case of paratransit bus service; commonly a private-run transportation scheme that aims to augment shortage (if any) in the local government's public transportation efforts. By adding handicap accessibility to transportation, many disabled people have been able to ride school bus, shuttle buses, and similar types of transport methods.
4. By equipping transportation systems with wheelchair lifts, new uses for buses have come up. Many ministries and religious organizations have begun using handicap church buses as a means to bring spiritual relief to their handicap parishioners. This type of private transportation not only allows the minister or reverend to visit those who do not have the physical capacity to go to church but it also serves as a type of rolling advertisement and reminder of the church. According to some manufacturers there has been an increase in handicap church bus sales.
5. People with disabilities who are stuck with assisted living (a condition wherein the handicap does not have the physical ability to survive on their own) also benefit from the use of wheelchair lifts in transport systems. Despite their seemingly hopeless case, they are now able to take either public or private transportation.
6. Smaller types of transport systems have also benefitted from the introduction of adaptive mobility devices. Many brand new and used commercial vans have undergone conversion to be handicap accessible. Similar types of accessibility devices installed in buses are used in the smaller minivans and full size vans. The main difference being the size of the adaptive device which takes into consideration the storage capacity of the host vehicle.
7. The installation of a power lift in smaller sized vehicles allows for wheelchair accessible vans to provide the person with disability the option to either be a passenger or a handicap driver. This important impact of the handicap lift brings a sense of normalcy to the life of the disabled person by allowing him to do things normally done by people without disability. Some technological innovations have even gone as far as allowing the disabled person to operate heavy machinery by installing hand held controls in combination with the handicap lift.
8. Inclusion of handicap lifts in transportation systems like new and used buses, minivans, and full size vans have also given birth to new safety concerns and requirements. Essentially, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration requires all vehicles that have installed handicap lifts to put in place a safety lift interlock. This is to prevent the driver from using the handicap lift during unsafe conditions like when the lift is still deployed and the driver tries to move the vehicle. When this device is in place, an alarm will sound when a potentially unsafe condition occurs.
9. Aside from being required by the Americans with Disability Act, the introduction of handicap lifts in the transportation industry has led to a number of research ventures to look into how to further improve handicap accessibility in transportation. Although sales cost may rise to a certain degree because of this, the corresponding safety, comfort, and accessibility that will be given to the disabled person is worth it in the long run.
10. The introduction of handicap accessible devices not only increased the sale of handicap buses but also proportionally increased the sale of adaptive technology equipment. It has also brought out more players in the adaptive mobility market which in the end benefits the consumer because there are more choices open to him.
Adaptive mobility devices like stair lifts, wheelchair lifts, vertical lifts, and other similar solutions are distributed by AmeriGlide, Planet Mobility, U.S. Medical Supplies, and Chair Lifts for Stairs among others.
