For more than 22 years I have served on the Newton Commission on Disability. As a blind, profoundly hard of hearing, and mobility-impaired resident, I have spent years advocating for accessible pedestrian infrastructure. I walked these same routes almost daily with my guide dog from the time I received her in 2017 until her retirement in 2025. During those eight years I repeatedly encountered many of the same barriers that still exist today.

Newton has made significant investments in bicycle infrastructure, and I applaud those efforts. However, I believe there is an important part of the transportation network that continues to receive far less attention: the sidewalks and pedestrian routes that people with disabilities depend upon every day.

These are not recreational walking routes. They are the routes to schools, public transportation, medical care, shopping and community life. Three major pedestrian corridors illustrate the problem.

Beacon Street–Waban Corridor

The first follows Beacon Street from Washington Street through Waban to the Angier School. This is a major pedestrian and school route. Although roadway improvements have occurred over the years, many sidewalks remain uneven, curb cuts are inconsistent or poorly maintained, and some mid-block crossings remain difficult or impossible for blind pedestrians to locate independently.

Lower Falls Corridor

The second connects Washington Street to Lower Falls. Safe pedestrian access across the Route 95 (Route 128) interchange remains unresolved, effectively separating Lower Falls from the Woodland MBTA station for pedestrians with disabilities. Whether responsibility ultimately rests with Newton or MassDOT, the result is the same: an important village and transit connection remains inaccessible.

West Newton Corridor

The third follows Washington Street from Beacon Street to the newly renovated and revitalized West Newton Village. Bicycle lanes have been installed along much of this corridor, yet the sidewalks and pedestrian infrastructure have not received the same level of attention. As a result, the village remains difficult or impossible for many residents with disabilities to reach safely on foot.

Taken together, these three corridors leave many residents effectively living on islands within their own city. For those of us living in the Woodland Station/Newton-Wellesley Hospital area, safe pedestrian access to both Lower Falls and West Newton is effectively cut off. That is what I mean by “living on an island.”

Accessibility should not be measured only by miles of bicycle lanes or traffic improvements. It should also be measured by whether a blind resident, an older adult using a walker, a wheelchair user, or anyone with a disability can safely travel between neighborhoods, reach a train station, visit a doctor, shop locally, or simply participate in community life.

Newton has the opportunity to become a leader in truly inclusive transportation planning. That begins by recognizing that sidewalks are transportation infrastructure and that pedestrians with disabilities deserve the same commitment that has been given to every other mode of travel.

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Barbara Lischinsky is a member of the Newton Commission on Disability and lives in Newtonville.