My college library, the continuing adventures

[killing_rose]

Because the library stairs are steep, I've noticed that I have more of a tendency to nearly fall while using them than I do on other stairs on campus.  I've had a number of increasingly close calls in the past several weeks, primarily because my balance has been more shot than normal. I can live with the pain that using stairs creates for me; however, I figured that it wasn't really bright to keep risking my life for books.

As previously detailed, back in October or some such, the librarians don't allow students use the elevator. My hope was that they would be willing to let people use the elevator anyway, if they (I) actually needed to.

Today, I finally braved talking to the librarian. (Mostly because it was one who hasn't screamed at me in the past.)

And she said, "Well, we can check out an elevator key to you. But well, not today." 

"Oh?"

"The elevator's broken. We're not letting anyone use it, though we have been sending books back and forth."

This makes sense to me, so I nod in agreement--I can stay on the first floor for a while. Or go up and down carefully.

Apparently, I can check out the key on Monday, probably.

This, however, is not the fail. I'm counting it as a accessibility win, albeit with caveats.

The fail is that, to talk to the nice woman at the desk, I had to walk up a flight of stairs to reach the first floor at all.

Oh, humans.

Comments

[grimreality]

So there is no lift to the first floor, where you had to ask for the key? Or was that the lift you need a key for? Also, if it's broken how are they using it to send books back and forth I wonder?

*deep sigh*

Thankfully my college has lifts in the library, and there is only one place in there I can't seem to access. Of course I have yet to attempt using one of the elevators to the stacks that my friend referred to as "super tiny."

[killing_rose]

The ground floor, where you enter, has minimal access to the elevator. You can only access this elevator if a) you already have a key or b) you go up the flight of stairs to the first floor to obtain the key.

Once you are in the library, there is still only the one elevator; it's several decades old, and rapidly disintegrating. And, as previously noted, students can only access it if they have a key.

The disintegration's why I can believe the "we can put books in it, but..." line. If it weren't for the fact that I've watched my ex grit her teeth before going in the elevator while she worked at the library, I probably wouldn't.

I'd like to note that no one I know of was aware of the fact that you could get a key prior to yesterday when I finally asked.

[grimreality]

Yeah, getting stuck in an *old* elevator doesn't seem like much fun.

They should just give keys to students with mobility disabilities upon request once (if?) they fix it. I hope it works out soon.