BonnerSprings.com

If it’s not raining or too hot, Ruby Shannon is sure to venture out daily around Bonner Springs on her electric wheelchair.

From the post office and the Dollar General to Miller’s Pharmacy and the Vaughn-Trent Thrift Store, Shannon takes her electric wheelchair as her main mode of transportation for wherever she needs to go.

“I go everywhere that you would go,” Shannon said. “This is my Cadillac.”

The recent death of Edna Kloepper, who was killed July 16 when she was hit by a car while riding her electric wheelchair through the intersection of Insley Street and Allcutt Avenue, raised questions about the safety of electric wheelchairs around town.

Shannon said Kloepper’s death has not affected her use of the electric wheelchair, which she has been using for five years. Before Kloepper’s death, Shannon said she was focused on safety while using her electric wheelchair.

“I am constantly watching (for cars),” she said.

While Shannon rarely rides in the streets, mostly sticking to sidewalks, she said she is aware of the risks of riding her electric wheelchair and takes caution.

Shannon’s wheelchair, however, is a smaller model, she said, and fits comfortably on the sidewalk. She said some people, such as Kloepper, have larger versions that don’t fit on the sidewalk and are operated better in the streets.

For those people, Shannon said they should stay to the side of the road just as if they were walking down the street. In addition, she said cars needed to be mindful that Bonner Springs does have an electric wheelchair-riding population and should pay close attention when driving around town.

Shannon compared riding an electric wheelchair in the street to riding a bicycle in the street. Her suggestion to the city would be to paint a bike lane on the major roads to keep not only the bikers but the electric wheelchair users safer as well. For those using an electric wheelchair in the street, Shannon also suggested getting a pole with a bright flag on the top attached to the device so they have a better chance of being spotted by cars.

Lt. Rick Schubert with the Bonner Springs Police Department said the city has no ordinance regarding the usage of the electric wheelchairs in city streets. He said the electric wheelchair, such as the one ridden by Kloepper at the time of her death, was considered just like any other wheelchair and not classified as a motorized device, such as a golf cart.

“Any ordinance passed would make it illegal to have any wheelchair in the street,” he said, adding that he didn’t ever foresee such an ordinance in the city’s future.

Schubert said while there is no set ordinance regarding electric wheelchair use in the streets, he said the Bonner Springs Police Department is a “service-oriented department” that “doesn’t object to going above and beyond to provide whatever service the community needs.” Meaning, if a police officer saw an unsafe use of an electric wheelchair, that officer may speak with the device user about safer practices.

Like Shannon, Schubert cautioned cars to stay alert.

“Follow the basic rules of the roadway,” Schubert said. “Don’t drive beyond the limit of your vision or your capacity for braking.”

Bonner Springs City Manager John “Jack” Helin agreed with Schubert that he didn’t see any ordinance regarding electric wheelchair use in the city’s future.

“They’re considered a wheelchair so they have full access,” Helin said. “We don’t want to deny someone that access, but they do need to be careful.”

Even if the city wanted to take up the electric wheelchair safety issue, Helin said he was unsure about the legality of considering such an ordinance of denying someone in a wheelchair access to the streets.

Kim Qualls, northeast Kansas public affairs manager with the Kansas Department of Transportation, said KDOT also does not have any rules regarding the use of electric wheelchairs on city streets. She said such usage would be prohibited on interstate highways, but it was up to a municipality to establish its own laws in regards to city streets.

While safety is an important factor at KDOT Qualls said, while pointing out the department’s involvement with the primary seatbelt law, there have been no past discussions regarding electric wheelchairs to the best of her knowledge.

“It’s more of a municipality issue at this point,” she said. “We at KDOT don’t have any recommendations further as far as (electric wheelchairs) goes.”

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