#197815 - 03/02/11 02:05 PM
cape cod ma --I'm looking to move there
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just me
Junior Member
Registered: 03/02/11
Posts: 15
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I want to move to Cape Cod MA, but I'm daunted by the number of hurtles I have to get past to get there.
I hoping someone came give me more information on Cape Cod and help me figure out how to deal with the hurtles.
While I can walk very, very short distances, I use a scooter to get around. Right know I live in a rural area and am virtually home bound. There is no handicapped transportation here. The local church provides me rides to my various doctors. I have few relatives, and get a very little bit of help (a drive to a family party once a year) from one or the other of the two nephews I have in the area.
So, I want to move to Cape Cod. I'm hoping I will be able to be more independent there, and get out of the house more. Also, I long to live near the ocean again. I know little about Cape Cod except what I've read on the internet. I think there is more transportation available there, but I'm not sure ( I get confused easily).
I've seen buses listed for Cape Cod, but I don't know if they allow scooters on them. I know they allow wheelchairs. Also, I'm interested in the bike trails. They say they allow electric wheelchairs, but, despite sending them an e-mail, I don't know if they allow scooters.
About the buses, I don't even know how one gets on a bus with a scooter. I know they have lifts, but how does one use them?
Also, I think I would need to spend maybe a week on the Cape just looking around, but how does one look around a new place when one can't drive. ( I would be doing this alone.)
I tried finding some place on the Cape that might have services for the disabled, hoping they could help me with some of this, but I came up blank.
Any help anyone could offer would be greatly appreciated.
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#197816 - 03/02/11 04:57 PM
Re: cape cod ma --I'm looking to move there
[Re: just me]
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Paul I
Member
Registered: 02/24/00
Posts: 7913
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If you think you were homebound wait until the first nor'easter drops by with inches upon inches of snow. Why not pick a town
further south near the ocean? SC, Georgia, Florida, Texas, etc?
I recall that Venice, FL was one of the most wheelchakr friendly
towns.
I'd trade the scooter for a very basic electric WC. You would automatically be able to avail yourself of wheelchair opportunities.
I lived an hour from the Cape for 30 years. Never again. Real estate is, I believe, high on the cape,traffic on weekends is
horrendous beyond belief as I recall at the time there was one bridge to the Cape.
You never let on about your disability but I can guarantee
you that Georgia or Florida have decent services for the disabled
compared to MA unless you're in Boston metro.
Edited by Paul I (03/02/11 04:58 PM)
_________________________
"...only the shadow knows"
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#197831 - 03/05/11 12:01 PM
Re: cape cod ma --I'm looking to move there
[Re: Paul I]
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just me
Junior Member
Registered: 03/02/11
Posts: 15
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Paul: Thank you for your input.
Regarding electric wheelchair vs scooter: I use a scooter instead of a wheelchair for several reasons, the main one is that I have a lot of balance problems and I'm afraid I would fall face first out of a wheelchair. (I often lean on the handles of my scooter to keep my balance.)
What I am trying to find out is if there really is a difference between the opportunities available to a scooter user as opposed to a wheelchair user. Specifically, can one use a bus that has a wheelchair lift if you're in a scooter?
As far as living in the south as opposed to the north: I have lived in the northeast all my life, and am well acquainted with being snowbound (esp. this winter). However, my medical condition makes the heat of the south unbearable, and I would unable to go outside because of the heat. So, the heat would keep me inside more than a snow storm. At least with snow, I can sit outside my back door.
It is hard to describe my disability because I have several illnesses and conditions.
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#197832 - 03/05/11 12:32 PM
Re: cape cod ma --I'm looking to move there
[Re: just me]
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Greg
Member
Registered: 08/20/05
Posts: 10000
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What size is your scooter?
I am a scooter user also and have travelled some. I have different size scooters and have found the larger size scooters while good for getting around in winter conditions just don't work for accessability. Anything larger than a Pride Revo really limits you for public buses, some washrooms and browsing in shops.
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#197833 - 03/05/11 12:58 PM
Re: cape cod ma --I'm looking to move there
[Re: Greg]
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just me
Junior Member
Registered: 03/02/11
Posts: 15
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I too use two different sizes of scooters. I have a rather big monster one that takes the up and down the hills of my yard. I also have a smaller three wheeled one that I use inside. That is the one I hope to be able to use on buses. I don't know the exact size, but when I first got it I measured it against my manual wheelchair and it is actually a couple of inches shorter than my manual wheelchair.
Does that mean that I would be able to use that scooter on buses?
also, since I have lived since my disability in a rural area with no public transportation, I have no idea how to actually use a wheelchair, or hopefully scooter, accessible bus. How can I learn such a skill? Do you know of any websites that might have instructions or videos of how such things are done?
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#197834 - 03/05/11 01:57 PM
Re: cape cod ma --I'm looking to move there
[Re: just me]
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Greg
Member
Registered: 08/20/05
Posts: 10000
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Here is a basic video for a bus, you can see why a big scooter wouldn't fit
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QvUOnGqXH-M
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m8xj8BLquqE&NR=1
you have a three wheeler which is better for turning radius especially inside the bus
once inside the buss there are straps to secure your scooter but I never bother with them since "scooter people" are tough
if a city has a bus service they usually have a web site which will detail the accessability of their vehicles
I try and avoid travel during rush hour as it can be more stressful working around the crowds
happy trails
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#197837 - 03/05/11 02:11 PM
Re: cape cod ma --I'm looking to move there
[Re: Greg]
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just me
Junior Member
Registered: 03/02/11
Posts: 15
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Greg
thank you so much for the links. They are great.the videos make it look almost easy.
you say that you have done this with a scooter -- that's fantastic, both for you and me.
thank you so much for your information and help.
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#197838 - 03/05/11 02:35 PM
Re: cape cod ma --I'm looking to move there
[Re: just me]
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Greg
Member
Registered: 08/20/05
Posts: 10000
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don't limit yourself to buses though, many trains are very acessable also, especially commuter trains
subways are an option also although the lifts between the floors always seem to breakdown when I'm around
and of course most taxis have accesable cabs if you phone ahead and book em
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#197839 - 03/05/11 05:01 PM
Re: cape cod ma --I'm looking to move there
[Re: Greg]
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Paul I
Member
Registered: 02/24/00
Posts: 7913
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Another thought would be the DC area while it can have some hot days as can NE has a great metro syste that reaches quite far into the suburbs where housing is cheaper. Chesepeake Bay is not quite the ocean but close. Then there S. Cal but it's the Pacific.
_________________________
"...only the shadow knows"
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#197840 - 03/05/11 06:05 PM
Re: cape cod ma --I'm looking to move there
[Re: Paul I]
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just me
Junior Member
Registered: 03/02/11
Posts: 15
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Greg: thank you for the tips. I had thought of Amtrak as a way to get from where I am to the Cape. I had not thought of taxis though as a way to get around the general. I'll have to check that out.
Paul I: I lived in the DC area for a short time and I felt about it much the same way you seem to feel about the Boston area. Basically, it was much too crowded and crime-ridden for me. Though I am intrigued by the Chesapeake Bay area. I may check that out but I think that the real estate is actually more expensive there than on Cape Cod.
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