He says he paid out of pocket to convert his van to be accessible, which included adding a ramp. Alemu says he made the investment because he wanted to help people with disabilities, and he thought providing accessible and regular taxi service would help business. But Alemu's vehicle is about to age past the city's standards and he says he can't afford to continue his service. He spent about $50,000 on the accessible vehicle in 2015, but it would cost about $130,000 now, he says.
French startup WheelMove demonstrated a compact motorized wheelchair add-on at CES 2026 that not only acts as a power-assist device, but can also lift up a chair's small front wheels so it can ride over rough terrain. The accessory upgrades a manual wheelchair with a 10-inch extra wheel and a 250W motor that can drive at up to six miles per hour (10 kilometers per hour) and handle slopes up to 10 percent, with a range of 15.5 miles (25km).
Air travel is a hassle for wheelchair users. You don't need to look far for proof: Social media is awash with stories of wheelchairs lost or damaged in transit, often met with minimal accountability from airlines. As we've noted before, "An airline losing your luggage is bad; an airline losing your wheelchair is much, much worse." Given that reality, you'd think making air travel even marginally more accessible would be a priority. Instead, recent developments suggest things may actually be moving in the opposite direction.