It may seem a small thing, but a Hillsborough County ordinance that helps disabled drivers gas up their vehicle illustrates how citizens, elected officials and businesses can work together to quickly address a community need.
A trip to a gas station can be a dangerous challenge to the disabled, who may have to negotiate around cars and gas pumps in a wheelchair.
As the Tribune's Howard Altman reports, Ben Ritter, government relations director for the Florida Gulf Coast Chapter of the Paralyzed Veterans of America, came up with a smart solution: Put placards at gas stations with a store phone number disabled drivers can call for assistance. The placards have the wheelchair symbol found on handicap parking stickers.
As Ritter points out, most everyone has cellphones these days. There was no need for a costly program.
County Commissioner Sandy Murman pushed the effort, and the industry embraced the ordinance, which enables anyone with a permanent handicap sticker to request aid.
The ordinance includes no penalty. As Murman says, if compliance problems occur, the county can always revisit the issue.
Now a trip to the gas station shouldn't be daunting for disabled drivers. Yet this was done with only the lightest government touch. Word is Broward County is following Hillsborough's example. All this happened because government officials paid attention to a citizen's sensible idea about a public problem.
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