Adaptive equipment

For some clients, driving is just a matter of verifying you are safe getting back behind the wheel. We are always happy to help in this regard. However, for other clients, returning to drive might be based on their ability to use adaptive equipment, or specific equipment aids meant to assist with driving.

Bridges is what is considered a low-tech driver rehabilitation program. What this means, is that we have simple mechanical controls that can help some drivers with their ability to operate the vehicle. Primarily, for us, this means hand controls.

Hand controls change the operation of the accelerator and brake system to be based on hand movements, rather than foot movements. There are many varieties of hand controls, ranging from all-mechanical to fully electronic controls. Bridges uses the Featherlite controls from SureGrip which are a sort of blend between the mechanical and electronic controls. The hand controls we use have a rod that goes down to the brake pedal for operation but the accelerator is using the computer system for acceleration. There are more descriptions and some videos of operation found on our Equipment page.

Other controls in the Bridges vehicle that you may see are spinner knobs (to be joining the Equipment page soon, keep your eyes peeled!). These knobs attach to the steering wheel and can provide assistance in steering and in operation of what are called secondary controls. These secondary controls are things like turn signals, windshield wipers, lights, horn, etc). We have knobs from both Suregrip and Bever Mobility. We would be happy to discuss these controls and their functions with you, if indicated in your case.

There are many other types of adaptive equipment options for driver rehabilitation and we hope to continue to grow our collection to aid those clients wishing to return to drive (with equipment). If you are interested in a specific piece of adaptive equipment, please reach out to us on our Contact Us page to inquire further.