Quebec drivers with disabilities get access to new technology
The SAAQ has lifted its 20-year moratorium on electric driving controls for people with reduced mobility.
That means controls like the "Joysteer" driving system is once again helping people like Shawn Neil get around town.
"As you can see, it's very smooth,” said Neil, who lives with muscular dystrophy. His van is outfitted with a small button control pad and a joystick to help him drive.
“Most people, if they're not looking, can’t tell you're in an adapted vehicle," he said.
At the Constance-Lethbridge Rehabilitation Centre on Montreal’s west side, mobility-reduced drivers are learning to use Joysteer in a garage before they go outdoors.
For 20 years, occupational therapist Dana Benoit has been pushing the SAAQ to approve it, and the government agency finally has.
“It is equipment that's been used for a long time,” she said. “It's used in all other provinces in Canada, and used in the States as well.”
“It really does allow clients who have those more serious functional impairments to use equipment that really answers their needs.”
Each system is tailored to serve the driver's abilities.
“They have a certain amount of movement and strength available, and we can really optimize that,” said occupational therapist Alyssa Merilees, who trains drivers to use the system.
“I wouldn't be able to have the job that I have right now without that kind of possibility to drive a car. I wouldn't have the same type of social life,” said accessibility advocate Clement Badra, who uses the system to get around. "For me, it's a game changer in my life."
-- For a look at the adapted driving system, watch the video report above by CTV's Christine Long.
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