At current pace, TD sidewalks will be ADA compliant in 60 years

Eilene Eislinger out for a walk on Cherry Heights in The Dalles near Goodwill. This is one of the ADA accessible sidewalks with a ramp in The Dalles. The City is adding 27 more at strategic locations in The Dalles at a cost of $217,000 more this construction season, but funding falls far short of the need. At current estimates, it will take 60 years to bring sidewalks up to standard with ADA ramps.

Six inches doesn’t seem like much.

Unless you are in a wheelchair or are using a walker and you're faced with a curb.

Then six inches can be the difference between being able to make it to the grocery store or not.

And while the City recognizes the situation and is working to improve it, most of the sidewalks in The Dalles lack ramps, and folks in wheelchairs or with other mobility issues run into barriers on a regular basis.

Or maybe, they just quit trying.

“A lot of people I talk to have just kind of accepted it,” said Scott McKay, Director of The Dalles Senior Center. “They just use the LINK bus to get around.”

In some places in The Dalles, it’s not the curb that’s the issue-it’s a lack of sidewalk altogether.

“On the west side along 10th street there’s no place to walk, there are no sidewalks so you just have to walk on the bike path if you can,” said McKay. 

McKay says he works to promote age and ability inclusive communities- not just for seniors but for youth and people of all ages. Accessibility and safety also comes into play when it comes to kids walking to school.

“The sidewalks particularly affect young kids too because it’s hard to walk to school safely when there’s no sidewalk,” said McKay.

Areas around schools have been given priority in the City’s plan to reach ADA compliance. The City’s goal is to have 100% of accessibility features within the jurisdiction of the City of The Dalles ADA compliant by the year 2081. That means that at the current pace, The Dalles sidewalks will be ADA compliant in 60 years.

Pictured: Eilene Eislinger of The Dalles, waits to cross the road at a curb cut on 9th and Cherry Heights.

However for the 23% of adults in Oregon who have a disability that seriously impacts their mobility the wait may simply be too long.

Especially for seniors, who make up 20.7% of the population of The Dalles.

“I don’t think I’ll be around by then,” said Eilene Eislinger, who will be turning 100 years old soon. While many people with mobility impairments may have opted to just use the LINK instead of traversing potentially dangerous sidewalks and roads, Eislinger says she still likes to walk and she still walks every day but uses a walker when she has to go long distances. 

“I used to walk all over town because I like to see different things and do different things but now I’m kind of limited as to where I can go. I don’t go to any different places anymore. I always go the same way because the sidewalk is better and the crossing is better,” said Eislinger. “And I like to see people’s yards and flowers.”

Pictured: Eilene Eislinger gets up from her walker to greet the LINK bus driver.

This graph shows that people are more likely to develop mobility issues as they age. A 2016 report by OHSU shows that 45.5% of adults 80 and older in Oregon have a disability. Source,

Mobility issues are the most common type of disability in Oregon according to a 2016 report by OHSU. ADA compliance is a serious issue for the approximately 950,000 people aged 18 years or older who have a disability in Oregon. Of which 58.5% of people with a disability in Oregon reported limitations in mobility such as serious difficulty walking or climbing stairs, and 10.3% reported difficulty completing errands alone. Source.

The State of Local Sidewalks

The state of some sidewalks in The Dalles makes it too difficult for people with limited mobility to traverse them. Within the City Right of Way, the most common barriers to ADA accessibility are 6” curbs at corners where a ramp does not exist, steep sidewalks, and sidewalks that have fallen into disrepair or have been damaged by tree roots, etc.

Approximately 66% of streets in The Dalles have sidewalks on at least one side, of which only about 2.6% of curb ramps meet accessibility criteria. (The city has upgraded 23 out of 879 existing ramps to meet criteria since 2019). 

“The absence of curb ramps, curb ramps that do not meet the current standard, and sidewalks in disrepair are a significant obstacle in navigating the city for those with disabilities,” said Michael H. Bosse Project Engineer and ADA Coordinator at the City of The Dalles Public Works. Bosse has been responsible for the City’s Public Works Standards and Specifications for Construction since 1999. 

Eislinger agreed.

“There are some really rough spots alright, that need to be taken care of I think,” said Eislinger. 

A Bad Fall

Eislinger experienced a bad fall a few years ago as a result of a sidewalk that had fallen into disrepair. 

“I went to the Library and was hurrying home and I always watch the humps on the sidewalk, you know but I guess I missed one,” said Eislinger. “I fell down over on 9th Street and broke my nose and broke my knee cap.” 

Eislinger, who resides at Cherry Heights Living, said that she now has to sign in and sign out of the building when she goes on walks. “Before they didn’t know where I was when I fell and got sent to the hospital. So now they want to know where I’m walking.”

Pictured: Eilene Eislinger talking to CCC News as she waits at the LINK bus stop. “Sometimes I’ll ride if I just want to get out and go someplace,” said Eislinger. “I’ll just ride the whole route.”

The City has said that lack of resources is a factor in the slow pace of work to bring the city’s sidewalks into full ADA compliance.

In 2019 The City estimated the total cost of the project to be approximately $7.8 million. Currently, ADA projects by the City are being funded through the Street Fund which is a dedicated fund used for the operation and maintenance of the City's transportation systems. 

“Here is a small town, the magnitude of the work needing to be done in comparison to the resources available to complete the task can seem overwhelming...However, we must make our sidewalk system accessible to any user in the present or future and remove any barriers that would prevent their use,” said Bosse. Community members with ADA concerns and grievances can file them with the city by clicking here. 

You Can Help Fix Your Sidewalks.

While full compliance may be years in the future, grant funding, a 50/50 sidewalk repair payment program, and community involvement and buy-in to the project may help speed up the process.

This year the City started a pilot 50/50 Sidewalk Program that splits the cost of repairing sidewalks between property owners and the City. The 50/50 Program application process for the 2021 construction season has already been completed. The City hopes that this program will be an annual program and that later in the year they will be opening applications for the 2022 season. This year’s program had 7 participants. 

Pictured: LINK Bus Driver Steve Wilson makes a regularly scheduled stop on 9th and Cherry Heights.

LINK Making it Work

In the meantime, public transit is doing its best to help people get around with the LINK BUS, LINK Shopping Route Bus, and Dial-a-Ride. Special attention has been given to make all buses and bus stops ADA accessible. And the shopping route bus also helps people carry their groceries into their house. 

“I drive about a dozen people a day, it’s been slow with the COVID, but our Dial-A-Ride stays pretty busy,” said Steve Wilson, LINK Bus driver. “They're hopping. They go door-to-door. It’s $1.50 to ride each way. And we are fully ADA trained.”

“She is my favorite bus rider,” said Steve Wilson. “And I look forward to seeing her out walking almost daily. Even when it’s windy and she’s got to really lean into it. She is tough. If there’s sidewalk, she’s walking. She could be a sidewalk inspector.”
Pictured: Eilene Eislinger (left) and Steve Wilson (right).