Tejumoladavid (@tejumoladavid)

ProposedUpdate 2onPower outlets at Toronto Public Library are out of reach for most people TPL

Emailed TPL's Accessibility Services with the outlet count and a short description of the second floor at Reference. Got an auto-reply with a ticket number and a note that facilities requests are reviewed monthly. I'll follow up in two weeks if I haven't heard back, and I'm going to count outlets at two more branches in the meantime so the ask covers more than one building.

NoticedNew idea TPL

Tejumoladavid@tejumoladavid· 10h

Power outlets at Toronto Public Library are out of reach for most people

Noticed
At the Toronto Reference Library and the Bloor/Gladstone branch, most power outlets are at floor level behind fixed tables or under desks. Wheelchair users, older visitors, and anyone with a bag of books have to crouch or shift furniture to plug in a laptop. On a weekday afternoon I counted 14 outlets on the second floor at Reference: 3 were reachable without bending to the floor, and 2 of those were already taken.
The change
Retrofit the reading tables on the busiest study floors with tabletop outlets and USB-C ports, the way the newer branches are built. Mark reachable outlets with a small floor decal so people can find them without hunting, and add two or three tall charging stands near the entrances so someone can top up a phone without taking a seat.
Needs
A contact on TPL's facilities or accessibility team, and anyone who has done a similar retrofit at a school or co-working space to sanity-check the cost.