The wheelchair ramp at the Bethesda Regional Health Centre in Steinbach has been re-opened following a $125,000.00 upgrade. Jan Gunness, Director of Health Services at the hospital, says the ramp was widened in three places to accommodate stopping and passing.

"We added some resting places and passing zones on the ramp. There are now three of them where you can either rest and/or use it to pass. As well, we have reconfigured the hand rails. There is an upper and lower hand rail now which makes the ability to self-propel up the ramp and down the ramp easier. We've also added some glass panels for sight lines so that it's easier to see across the ramp as well."

The ramp was opened a year ago but complaints soon followed that it was too steep and narrow. That prompted the changes. Gunness says early reviews are positive.

"The ramp re-opened a couple of weeks ago, in fact I think it was October 8th, and we've had really positive feedback from our public as they've used the ramp to access the building."

Sign at the bottom of the ramp