4 ms·
I'm severely visually impaired. I walk and use public transit. Currently in the pacific northwest. My quality of life has decreased so much since covid and when
by arandomsapien 3y ago
I'm severely visually impaired. I walk and use public transit. Currently in the pacific northwest. My quality of life has decreased so much since covid and when these policies came into effect. I tripped over someone asleep on the train floor and they lost their shit. I was really scared. One of dozens of instances. And the cities in general must become less walkable to avoid crime. Fences around apartments that mean less sidewalk access, store entrances near transit that close early, and people camping on the sidewalk that block access.
At this moment, it feels society cares less about me and others who want to use public services than the addicts.
It's been an especially hard couple of months here in Portland. I've traveled around, hoping to find a new place to live. But all the big US cities with good transit suffer the same issues. At best, I wish I could move to another country I could live in and feel I had a sense of agency, if anyone would have me. But at this point I'm feeling like it's time to give up.
- mikhael 3y agohopefully this doesn’t sound insulting - have you considered cities outside of the US, like Tokyo or others in Japan?
- chrischen 3y agoJapan is probably one of the most blind/disabled friendly cities I’ve seen. Sometimes there are people sleeping on the floor of the trains too but if you trip over them they’d likely continue sleeping or apologize to you.
- biggestlou 3y agoEmigration to Japan is well nigh impossible
- thefourthchime 3y agoAustin is quite visually impaired friendly. The Texas School for the Blind is here and I often see people walking around with canes. You also won't trip over anyone sleeping on the streets, save a couple of places downtown.
- capn_duck 3y agoThis is peak Hacker News response
- bogota 3y agoIf this is downvoted the comment it’s responding to also should be. I mean really… “have you thought about moving to another country that speaks a different language and is a 20 hour flight from anyone you know?”
- arandomsapien 3y agoI know a bit about Tokyo and while I love the idea, I don't think it's very practical. The language barrier is real. I'm not great at non-computer languages, and Japanese script seems tough to read when one is visually impaired. From what I've seen, living as a foreigner there can be a bit isolating long term. Currently looking at Europe. But immigration is hard anywhere. And there are tax implications I don't understand well.