"Right now, folks asking for help have to honk the horn. It's not exactly the most enjoyable thing to do, for drivers with disabilities [image-nocss] or for others filling up around them," PVA executive director Michael Harris told the newspaper. And it doesn't always work, said the report.
"You feel uncomfortable because the people getting gas don't know what you're honking about," Harris added. "And a lot of times, the people inside don't hear it. So you just sit there."
Harris said one station, a Marathon Westland, Mich., has installed a device that goes a long way toward helping. It is called the Fuel Call, a pole-mounted, doorbell-like gadget that alerts gas station attendants that a driver with disabilities needs help refueling. It's set up so that a button is easily reachable.
"It's very simple," Harris said. "We're trying to get more gas stations to adopt this as their standard operating procedure."
Harris' group worked with representatives of the state's petroleum industry and the Michigan Department of Agriculture and came up with www.thepumpguide.com, a list of more than 900 state gas stations that participate. The site lists hours of operation at the stations and whether they offer amenities such as ATMs, car washes and accessible restrooms. The list can be searched by county, ZIP code and route and within a specified distance of an address.
The pump-side service is available only to drivers who have an official state disability license plate or a placard that hangs from rearview mirrors, said the report. By law, stations cannot charge more for the service.
Click herefor more details on the Fuel Call device.
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