As always, the Dreams crew did an amazing job covering a really broad topic in a very comprehensive and efficient fashion! (Hi y'all!
)
Only 2 things I would add - and both of them were touched on a bit.
First, both Tracy and Kevin talked about loading mobility devices first onto buses. And, that's true - we do load first. "Lucky" us! (you can't see me, but trust me, I'm ROTFLMAO right now) What the casual observer fails to notice is that
we also always unload last. So, the able-bodied bipedals are long gone, through Security and into the Park by the time I get on the ground at the Bus stop. (or Marina or Monorail platform). But sure, I got to load first, and
then I got to sit on the bus the longest, before I got to be the last one off! Despite appearances to the contrary, I truly don't mind; for me, it's a small price to pay to have the ability to go to WDW. And the vast majority of the transportation CMs that we meet on every trip are just fantastic people.
The other subject was one that kind of ties in to the discussion where Kevin and Tracy both agreed that we can't judge who "deserves" to use an
ECV or
DAS. One thing I think we all need to remain aware of is that we have a significant portion of our community that has "invisible" conditions that are very real. For example, if you looked at me, you might decide that I don't "need" to own my own personal mobility device, but the reality is that my actual disability is invisible. And invisible disabilities can require many different kinds of accommodations - not just mobility devices, but all sorts of things, from not waiting in line (which the DAS can address) to emergency access to a bathroom, or even maintaining a strict medicine, nutrition or hydration schedule, or having a Resort room with a roll-in shower. Disney has a lot of ways - both big and little - that they help accommodate our community every single day. It doesn't matter what your disability is, or how you need to manage it; WDW really is one of the greatest places in the world to visit because they work hard to assist every Guest to the best of their ability.
And while a future show that highlights the HA rooms at the Resorts (measurements would be especially helpful) would be awesome for folks in this community, I fear that it might make the few HA rooms that are available even tougher to reserve; other people might see the roll-in shower bathrooms as having more space (when they don't really have more space, it's just arranged differently) and those rooms would become truly impossible to reserve. I know that I can't travel to WDW without a roll-in shower room, and there are Resorts right now that almost impossible for me to reserve as it is. So... maybe *don't* do that show...?
Thanks again for a great, comprehensive show!
