One
guy from the group Living with Muscular Dystrophy has
asked me
about the accessibility of public transport in Czech Republic.
I started typing the answer and soon it became apparent the answer
will be long. Like, really really long. So I have decided to make a
blogpost
from it, because it could show how it works in post communist country
without Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA).
Our
country, the Czech Republic,
had accepted some international law concerning rights of people with
disabilities, however nothing as
specific
as
ADA. According the law materials I have in my hand, in my humble
opinion there should not be any bus, tram, underground/subway station
and cars that is NOT accessible,
however I am not a trained lawyer and I have hard time reading this
legalese.
Our
capital is called Prague. In the city center, there are 3 main metro
(subway, underground) intersections. One is not accesible. There is
going to
be a
big reconstruction of an important station (Národní Třída)
and I was afraid the developer would
"forget"
about accessibility... they didn't.
Main tram intersection is not
accesible. About 1/3 trams are low floor. To get safely to a tram
when using wheelchair or with legs like mine, you need this
combination: raised platform and low floor tram. On the Lazarská street,
the platform is not raised, you are entering the tram directly from
the road. Even though the low floor tram
stops here, if you are a wheelchair user, person with disability that
affects your legs, have a leg injury, or have a baby carriage you
can't enter the tram safely or not at all. It is a really bad thing
for incoming tourism from countries, where disabled people are
treated with more respect which means they collectively seek
happiness, tourism included.
 |
| On the picture is Brno city astronomical clock, black onyx obelisk that looks suspiciously phallic. |
Now
I move to my own city, Brno. Brno is a beautiful city full of
paradoxes. Our elected city officials have put 600 000 USD to make a
city astronomical clock, that does not show time.
The same
approach is implemented in accessibility.
It’s
possible to have dropped curb on one side of the pavement, but you
can get from in on the other side, because the curb is not dropped.
On Mendlovo náměstí, an important tram, bus, and trolleycar
intersection, raised traffic island is needed. There was a
reconstruction recently, and the investors have "forgotten"
about accessibility again. Low entry trams without
matching traffic islands
are not really helpfull, and this approach to accessibility wastes
money, because is not functional.
My
own suburb where I do live, has lot of disabled citizens, every
street has at least one parking place reserved for the disabled
citizen living there. We have about 4 traffic islands missing, I
hope if there will be reconstruction made, our city council
officials would be able to learn from mistakes.
I would
love to write about other cities, but even getting there is a tedious
process for me. When I have traveled to Olomouc in the year 2013, I
wrote to our rail company something like this: I am not a wheelchair
user, but I would love and need to use your wheelchair lift, because,
even as a biped I can't enter high floor train. The rail company
arranged a lift for me, and I traveled to Olomouc, had a great night
DJing and partying. Not drinking, lots of stairs in the clubs and I
tend to fall down when I am drunk and happy. DJing does make me
happy. So no drinks for me that night. And i travelled back, using
wheelchair lift even I am a biped.
 |
| The picture is of me as a DJ in a party, feeling happy, and a guy with a Czech Flag waving at me. |
This
is not Olomouc however, this is an
event
with Bryan Kearney in Brno, 7Nebe Club.
Something
has changed in the rail company, and now
the
rail company has a regulation that no one can stand on the wheelchair
liftand
therefore
I am not allowed to travel by rail, and sitting in a bus makes my
legs ache. I wonder how much money would
they
have to spend, to make every train station with a wheelchair lift
equipped with one old hospital wheelchair, to satisfy both the
regulation and the rights of disabled people. It surely is not
extremely expensive. People with neuromuscular diseases and other
condition might get into a trap, when they are too healthy for
electric wheelchair, but their
arms
are too weak
(e.g.
the muscle tissue changed to something else, like ligament) to push
off
mechanical wheelchair, and so they
prefer walking (with changed movement stereotype ・
medically
speaking,
this is not walking).
And
I am sure there is more people in this trap like me, who are looking
for ways to get active and seek happiness, be it by traveling or
entertaining others with their skills and so on. And it hurts the
incoming
tourism too.
I
did not write this piece of blog to be pitied, or to yell at someone,
or to be praised. I write this as a kind of feedback, what is
missing, and what should be better. The principles of universal
design, or accessibility, comprise of these:
Recognizing
the features that could form barriers for some people
Thinking
inclusively about the whole range of impairments
Reviewing
everything ・
from
structure to smallest detail
Seeking
feedback from users and learning from mistakes
I
have hope, that the people responsible for this situation, the city
officials
or,
the rail company executives can learn from the mistakes. And that
the responsible people will not just follow regulation but create
regulation that holds the opinions of disabled people in respect.
