Amphibious wheelchair rental makes Ontario beach town more accessible

Beaches aren't the most wheelchair accessible places but the town of Goderich, Ont. is aiming to make a change at their main beach by offering people free access to a floating wheelchair.

It is called a Mobi-chair and unlike regular wheelchairs, it's designed to roll out on the sand and float on the water. It will be available to use August 21, though booking starts Tuesday through the Goderich Tourism Centre.

The project came together so quickly it was like all the stars aligned to make it happen, said Julie Sawchuk, an accessibility strategist from Blyth who donated the floating wheelchair to the town.

"The deputy mayor [of Goderich] had just started making inquiries about the town buying one of these wheelchairs at the same time that I was talking to the county about donating mine," Sawchuk said.

An acquaintance had given her a Mobi-chair floating wheelchair, worth approximately $3,000 new, and it spent most of its time gathering dust except for Family Day at the beach. Now that it's in the town's hands, it can be enjoyed by people who need it throughout summer, she said.

"Getting it out there was this complicated thing I had to organize with my family. Now, it's already there and I just have to book it, meet a friend there and have the help that I need," Sawchuk said.

Looking to expand in the future

Community interest in a floating wheelchair for the main beach had just hit city council's radar when everything came together, said Trevor Bazinet, the deputy mayor of Goderich and chair of the accessibility advisory committee..

"A friend reached out to me who has a friend that was unfortunately paralyzed in an accident. She told me how great having a Mobi-mat on the beach was and she sent me photos of different chairs that other beaches in the area have," Bazinet said.

He sent the photos to Sawchuck to get her opinion on which was better and found out she had a similar model and wanted to donate it.

A few weeks later on Friday, the Mobi-chair was brought to the main beach so they could see it in action.

"It works fantastic. I was blown away about how easy it was to get it in the water and then out of the water," he said, adding the town is also looking at making their other beaches more accessible with another chair in their 2024 budget, Bazinet said.

More accessible than a regular wheelchair

A Mobi-mat is a portable, roll out mat that can be put over the sand at the beach to let regular wheelchair users get close to the water.

While useful, Sawchuck said that a floating wheelchair is much more versatile.

"It's pretty phenomenal. Being on a beach is impossible with a regular wheelchair and you can't take it in the water without possibly damaging it," she said.

The floating wheelchair is designed to be guided by someone else while in the water, but Sawchuck said if the person can still swim, they can let the chair float and get back on when they want to be brought back to the beach.

"I'm really excited that the town has figured out a way for it to be available during the day and people can book it for free. There's been a lot of people expressing interest in it already."