By Ian Browning

If you think trying to navigate sidewalks in the city is difficult after a snowstorm, imagine how it must be for those in wheelchairs.

During the second snowiest December on record, the Neighborhood Access Group (NAG), which advocates making sidewalks and crosswalks accessible for disabled people, cited violations by property owners that in some cases made it impossible for disabled people to move. Northeastern accounted for two of those violations.

The violations occurred at properties on Hemenway Street, where Northeastern failed to clear the snow and ice from sidewalks. Snow removal law gives Northeastern and others cited three hours to clear a 42-inch path on sidewalks, but during the weekend of Dec. 15 Northeastern failed to clear a path in the snow at all, according to pictures taken by NAG.

“Every time there is a snowstorm we make every effort to clear all the walks and curb cuts,” said Northeastern Director of Communications Fred McGrail. “Not only our property, but the surrounding properties as well.”

He said Northeastern does an excellent job clearing snow, but because of the back-to-back snowstorms, workers weren’t able to clear everything.

“Many times other people will track snow or something and it isn’t taken care of right away,” McGrail said. “We can’t be watching everywhere all the time.