Editors, Vineyard Gazette:  It has been brought to my attention
by a number of people in Oak Bluffs that a crosswalk that was
accessible for disabled individuals in wheelchairs was recently
painted over, one way of stopping the use of the crosswalk. At
first, I didn’t understand this move, but then lo and behold
they started to park taxis in the area that now blocks the use
of the sloped ramp altogether.  And that’s not the worst of it.
Although they made another crosswalk farther down the street,
possibly to replace the crosswalk they covered over, they forgot
one important element: The ramp or slope, if you will, needed
for the people in wheelchairs to access the sidewalk. So here is
what happens. Once a disabled person crosses the street they are
left stranded, with a three to four-inch curb that stops them
from getting on the sidewalk. These brave souls are forced to
put themselves in harm’s way by having to go further down the
street, in the highly trafficked area of the Oak Bluffs
Steamship Authority te