Several disabled residents yesterday accused McDonald’s of ignoring the rights of disabled customers because of the poor wheelchair accessibility of its stores and urged the fast food chain to create a disabled-friendly environment.
Gathering in front of a McDonald’s store on Guangfu S Road in Taipei, the disabled residents complained of a lack of wheelchair ramps and immovable chairs that made it difficult for people in wheelchairs.
“Many of the McDonald’s restaurants have stairs and thresholds at store fronts, and people in wheelchairs like me have been unable to dine in McDonald’s comfortably. As a major fast food chain, we expect McDonald’s to do better,” said Chou Chian-ju (周倩如), who relies on a wheelchair.
Besides establishing wheelchair ramps in front of the restaurants, McDonald’s should also offer menus designed for the visually challenged, she said.
Accompanying the disabled residents in the protest, Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Taipei City Councilor Wang Shih-cheng (王世堅) called on the -Taipei City Government to use its authority to demand that the fast food chain improve the situation and inspect other restaurants for disabled facilities as well.
Jessica Pan (潘瑞蓮), manager of the communications department at McDonald’s Restaurants Taiwan Co, said the company will install call bells in all 348 of its restaurants in Taipei by Feb. 1. Disabled customers can press the bell in front of the restaurants, and staff will help them get into the restaurants and order meals.
McDonald’s will also make sure that all new restaurants are equipped with wheelchair ramps, automatic doors, movable tables and chairs, call bells and disabled restrooms, she said.
However, the fast food chain made no mention of setting up wheelchair ramps at current restaurants.
Lo Wen-ming (羅文明), chief engineer at Taipei City’s Department of Urban Development, said McDonald’s and other restaurants are not required by law to establish facilities for the disabled, as restaurants are not defined as “public buildings.” Also, the city government has no authority to force the fast food chain to set up facilities for the disabled.
The Taipei Department of Health yesterday said it has launched a probe into a restaurant at Far Eastern Sogo Xinyi A13 Department Store after a customer died of suspected food poisoning. A preliminary investigation on Sunday found missing employee health status reports and unsanitary kitchen utensils at Polam Kopitiam (寶林茶室) in the department store’s basement food court, the department said. No direct relationship between the food poisoning death and the restaurant was established, as no food from the day of the incident was available for testing and no other customers had reported health complaints, it said, adding that the investigation is ongoing. Later
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