Winnipeg senior drives scooter on streets to avoid snowy sidewalks

A Winnipeg senior is sick of driving her scooter on the street because the sidewalks are too snowy.

Wendy Graham has cerebral palsy and lives at the Riverside Lions Seniors Residences in St. Vital. Many of the seniors who live there also have a disability.

Graham has gone outside just once in the past month, braving the snow-packed streets on her scooter for the sake of food.

"I went down St. Anne's Road — on the road — because I didn't like what the sidewalk looked like," she said.

The sidewalk isn't visible at all. It's covered with tightly packed snow, bordered on one side by four-foot-high mounds left by the street plows and dotted with snow piles all the way to Sobeys.

St. Anne's Road runs beside the seniors residences where Graham lives and for many who live there, serves as the main route to grocery stores, the bus stop and St. Vital Mall.

Risky ride

Graham said it's risky to take her scooter into traffic.

"I don't like it, and I've actually been stopped by city police and they told me I'm not safe, but I'm like yeah … but the road's a lot safer than the sidewalk," she said.  

Graham has gotten her scooter stuck in the snow three times this winter.

The looming snowbanks along St. Anne's Road also hide Graham from drivers.

"You hope somebody comes by or digs you out or pushes you out," she said.

"It can be really frustrating."

A spokesperson for the City of Winnipeg said the patience of Winnipeggers is appreciated while crews deal with this year's heavy snowfall and severe weather.

Plowing crews have been clearing sidewalks and active transportation trails "continuously" since the first storm in December, the spokesperson said.

Graham hopes next year, crews come more quickly and clear the sidewalks all the way down to the pavement.

"Do a good job on the sidewalks to begin with and then they're not such a big problem for the rest of the winter," she said.

"We have independent, handicapped people here and a lot of seniors. They need this to be well-maintained in order for people to do their activities."