THERE are many things that we take for granted, and I believe that our bodies are one of them. We don’t think much about having 10 fingers, two hands, two eyes and all the appendages and organs that enable us to function in our day-to-day lives. However, able-bodiedness is a luxury not everyone is born with.
No one stays young forever; aging affects everyone from the least to the greatest. And once your body is no longer as strong or as flexible as it once was, can you still freely move around your city?
If we want our cities to be smart, resilient, livable and safe, they must be accessible to the most vulnerable members of society: children, women, the elderly, and persons with disabilities.
Inaccessible by design
Much of our urban infrastructure is designed under the presumption that everyone is able-bodied. However, there are at least 2.5 million persons with disabilities, based on the registrations with the National Council for Disability Affairs.
Take note that terminology is important because it must account for the lived experiences of the people that are being referred to. We use the term “disability” because it highlights the challenges and barriers, without degrading the dignity of people.
Sidewalks aren’t accessible; walkways have no protection against the elements; and overpasses are preferred over at-grade crossings. Even for physically fit individuals, traversing such hostile infrastructure is already a great challenge. How much more for wheelchair users or those with mobility impairments?
Here is a simple test to determine whether your city is accessible: Can your grandmother go outside to buy medicine on her own, without needing a caretaker? Can your child go to school safely, without having to be chauffeured in a private vehicle?
Accessibility Law or BP 344
The problem with the Philippines is not a lack of laws. Rather, it is the lack of enforcement and implementation. Batasang Pambansang 344 (Accessibility Law) has been in effect since Feb. 25, 1983. This law gives specific provisions for buildings to ensure that they are accessible to persons with disabilities.
Ramps have specifications such as minimum width, maximum gradient, and landings to make sure wheelchair users can use them without needing assistance. And even the width and handle height of doors must be sufficient for them.
Much thought has been put into the accessibility requirements needed to secure a building permit. Yet, when you walk outside of your doorstep, it is as if no such law had ever existed. You would be forced to ask whether the people who build our cities actually walk in them.
Examples of vulnerable groups
The term “accessibility” is often used in the context of disabilities. However, this is essential for every human being, especially for those with specific needs.
Children are still growing and lack the situational awareness that adults have. That’s why traffic calming and slow streets are important for their routes when going to school. The elderly lack the physical strength and endurance they once had in their youth. They need benches where they can rest to break up long stretches of walking.
As mothers and homemakers, women have more complex travel patterns than men, given the errands they perform throughout the day. Because they spend more time out on the streets, they need to be safe and secure throughout the whole trip — especially from sexual harassment and abuse. This is doubly so for pregnant women. Security by design, such as Jane Jacob’s Eyes on the Street concept, can help address the risks faced by women.
A person with disability is someone who has a physical and/or mental impairment that prevents them from having equitable access to society. Our understanding of them should not be limited to just those with mobility impairments, for there is a wide range of disabilities, and one person can have multiple disabilities.
Accessibility is social equity
Just like what I wrote in my UP term paper in 1973, “Development is not worthy of its name, unless it is spread evenly like butter on a piece of bread.”
When our streets are safe and accessible for the most vulnerable members of society, they are safe and accessible for everyone. A simple ramp doesn’t benefit just wheelchair users. It can also help a worker with a pushcart, a mother with a stroller, or a person walking with a bicycle.
Accessibility should not be optional, because it is essential for people to participate in society and live purposeful and meaningful lives. When we neglect this in our infrastructure and policies, we are essentially communicating that vulnerable people do not belong in our cities.
By 2050, we will need at least 100 new cities to accommodate more than a hundred million Filipinos living in urban areas. The question that must be asked, though, is: What kind of cities will we build — not just for ourselves when we grow old, but also for the generations to come?
We must stop building environments that disable people, and instead create cities that will protect the most vulnerable of society. In order for that to happen, accessibility must be at the front door, not the back entrance.
