MADISON, Wis. -- Some disabled students on the University of Wisconsin campus are having a hard time making it to class this week.

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While most sidewalks have been cleared, even small patches of snow and ice can create barriers for some students.

"That's what we'll see, stretches of a path that will be clear and then there will be three or four feet of rutted ice," said Cathy Trueba, Director of the UW's McBurney Disability Resource Center. "For somebody walking, they can navigate that small stretch, but if you're using a chair or a person with difficulty in balance, gait, or vision that stretch basically creates a barrier that student may not be able to get past."

Ben Schifskey knows that. He's missed class on Monday and Tuesday this week because he couldn't get to his car or the bus stop.

Schifskey, a graduate student, has used a wheelchair all his life. He knows how to maneuver in snow.

He headed toward his bus stop on Tuesday.

"The problem is these giant snow banks that spill out onto the sidewalks," said Schifsky. "This is where I stopped this morning," he said. I kind of tightroped it through here and then I got to this."

This, was a giant block of snow and ice that had been cleared from the street and nearby businesses. One large chunk jutted out across most of the sidewalk, WISC-TV reported.

"I was literally stuck right there and my bus stop is further down that way," said Schifskey.

WISC-TV checked Schifskey's bus stop and found the sidewalk and curb conditions weren't much better.

"I'm supposed to be in class right now," said Schifskey. "We're supposed to be presenting our group projects right now that we worked on Saturday night."

On Monday, Schifskey couldn't get within three feet of his car, which was parked in the lot outside of his University Ave. apartment, even though he'd asked apartment maintenance to shovel a path for him.

"I'm stuck, literally."

But even if he could get to campus, he'd face the same obstacles.

"This particular storm was hard to respond to because of the amount of work that goes into clearing the path of travel," said Trueba. "It's not just pushing snow out of the way. It's dealing with snow, then ice and ruts in a storm that happened pretty quickly."

Trueba said students like Schifsky can call the UW Physical Plant directly and ask for specific paths to be cleared.

"That's just not good enough because I need to go more places than just the specified path," said Schifsky.

In Schifsky's case, he lives off campus, so the sidewalk problems belong to the city.

He said he tried to find a number to call on the city Web site, but had no luck.

Advocates for the disabled said that when clearing sidewalks, parking lots and paths from snow and ice, remember to make it safe for everyone.

"They think that, 'Oh we did enough for people to walk through,'" said Schifsky. "'its fine. The minimum effort is done so our job is done.'"

"It's not just about getting it good enough to trudge over it and make a path with your feet," said Schifsky's girlfriend Briana Strelow. "It's about cleaning it out and making it safe for everybody."

"It's not just the quantity of snow shoveling, but the quality of snow shoveling," said Trueba.

While Schifsky was explaining his situation to WISC-TV, a man from a nearby business came out with a shovel to break apart the chuck of ice blocking Schifsky's path.

"Thanks," he called out.

Trueba said she believes the University is doing it's best to respond to snow removal overall and on an individual basis.

For snow removal requests in the City of Madison call 608-246-4532 for the East Side and 608-266-4681 on the West Side. The public can also file a complaint online.

For more information about the UW Physical Plant, call 608-263-3333.