Toronto engineer honoured for building accessible ramps

A Toronto engineer who created a simple, user-friendlyramp that's made hundreds ofbusinesses more accessibleis being honoured for his work.

Luke Anderson received the Everyday Political Citizen award fromcivic advocacy group Samara Canadaon Thursday, designated by theUnited NationsasInternational Day for Persons with Disabilities.

"To be nominated blew me away, beingshortlistedleft me speechless, but to win I'm at a loss for words," he said.

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So far, he has supplied 800 businesses in Toronto and the GTA with the ramps free or at low cost.

"As a wheelchair user I am affected by barriers in our communities that prevent me from accessing the spaces that I desire," Anderson said.

Anderson saida few centimetres of gap between the pavement and the first step of a building can be a significant barrier for wheelchair users.

"Our ramps are super brightly-coloured so people notice them and it gets the conversation started about the problem," he said.

He even had to bring one of his own ramps to access the building where he accepted his award, prompting MichaelMacMillan, a co-founder of Samara Canada, to consider a more permanent solution to the building accessibility problem.

"The irony of the difficulty accessing this building underlines the importance of his work exactly," saidMacMillan.

Samara Canadapromotes citizen engagement andhands out the award every year to three Canadians to recognize their important political contributions to society.

The other winners of the award areHanaWoldeyes,a 17-year-old advocate for newcomer youth, from Vancouver and Cory Nicotine, a Cree man fromSaddle Lake, Ab., for starting a program that breaks down cultural and religious barriers among youth.