U.S. Open Attendees Face Accessibility Issues

Tennis fans from across the world will take transit to this month’s U.S. Open in Flushing Meadows Corona Park, Queens, NY, — but those who depend on a wheelchair or other mobility might have trouble getting there: Neither the subway nor Long Island Rail Road (LIRR) station have elevators, Streetsblog NYC reports. Wheelchair users can exit the subway via a ramp, but only if they took an eastbound train and only on Mets gamedays. The boardwalk — which passes by the LIRR entrance — is a splinter-ridden, bumpy and deteriorating nightmare to traverse on wheels. The Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) included an accessibility project at the LIRR station in its current capital plan, but not the adjacent subway, and the project does not have funding. Plans do not address the boardwalk. City officials have pledged full ADA accessibility when the project wraps up — likely years from now.