Historic cities, accessibility problems in Italy

In historic cities, lack of accessibility for disabled people is the norm. The solutions exist and are easily implemented, as emerges from the scientific article "A study on accessibility in an Old Italian City: when the past is worth more than the present ", Posted in Disability & Society, pp. 1-25, in October 2020 (DOI: 10.1080 / 09687599.2020.1829552), of which a summary follows.

Disability is not about others

The theme of disability is much studied internationally while it has less visibility in Italy and this should already stimulate further reflection in consideration of the numbers that the phenomenon presents. In fact, according to the World Health Organization, about 15% of the world's population lives with some form of disability and the numbers are steadily increasing. This depends not only on the aging of the population but also on the increase in chronic and degenerative diseases affecting people of all ages, from accidents, wars, natural or man-made disasters, food problems and more.

To that add the recent development of neuroscience which has increased the categorization of childhood disorders that today fall under the so-called developmental disabilities. There has therefore been a substantial increase in the diagnosis of autism spectrum disorders (ASD), attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and other cognitive disorders which - especially in European and American societies - has led to a considerable increase in children defined as disabled within school systems. In Italy the numbers are even greater as, according to ISTAT, about 20% of the population has a functional limitation.

Accessibility is autonomy

Many are the areas related to disability: school, work, health, sport, tourism, social policies and more. Among these, accessibility is certainly one of the most important because accessibility, for a person with disabilities, generates autonomy. The issue of accessibility also has many faces as its opposite affects many aspects of daily life: from documents to sites website, from ATMs to lifts, from restaurants to places of study, work and care.

Furthermore, and as will be seen below, the lack of accessibility is amplified in historic cities, as beautiful as they are numerous both in Europe and in Italy. Our cities - and in particular those of ancient origin - have numerous architectural barriers. The problem is that when we talk about historical places and buildings we think of environments to visit for artistic and cultural interest, while in reality they are often environments where daily activities take place. And when these are inaccessible or scarcely accessible, they prevent people with disabilities from fully participating in economic, political and social life.

Historic cities, conservation vs accessibility

A great importance it is attributed to the conservation of places and buildings of historical and cultural interest, for the protection of which there are specific rules. However, there are specific rules and recommendations - both supranational and national - also for the removal of architectural barriers.

The point is that often these normative sets are interpreted as if they were in contrast with each other and, usually, conservation tends to prevail over accessibility. For example, the 2006 United Nations Convention recognizes the right of persons with disabilities to access only "as far as possible" to places and monuments of recognized cultural value. And this - perhaps - would also be acceptable if it were a question of places reserved for tourism or leisure, as the Convention itself seems to highlight. But what do we do if these places and buildings are used as public offices, workplaces or schools? Again by law, and given their intended use, these environments must be accessible. But often this is not the case.

The case of Trento

Let's take it as a case the city of Trento is an example. Founded by the Romans in the 1981st century BC, like many other ancient Italian and European cities, it has already undergone many transformations of an architectural and urban nature, thus losing many traits of historical originality. It should be noted that Trentino has worked hard to develop and improve accessibility legislation. Thanks to the possibility of autonomous legislation, this Province promulgated in XNUMX the first specific Italian law on the removal of architectural barriers in private buildings. Yet, as emerged from the experiences of the people interviewed for this research, and as documented through a large collection of photographs, many barriers still exist in historic buildings and in the city center.

Despite Trento is considered quite accessible by the same people with disabilities, even here conservation tends to prevail over accessibility.

Flooring at risk of falling

Let's start from an element that no one thinks of, namely the cubed flooring which, typical in the centers of cities of ancient origin, seems to represent its historicity. But this type of flooring can cause big problems for people with disabilities who, in interviews, pointed out that a smoother and more regular surface would be the best solution, because wheelchairs, sticks and other support devices would move smoothly and without causing risk of overturning or falling.

From research however, it emerged that the cubed flooring could also remain if it were subject to constant maintenance in order to make it uniform and free of holes: among other things, constant maintenance would contribute to the aesthetics of the city and to its image as a well-kept place.

Impassable sidewalks

Another problem it concerns sidewalks that are not always present in older and narrower streets: therefore, when they exist, they should be a safe place for people with disabilities, but this is not the case.

In the last decades the historic centers of many European and Italian cities, including Trento, have become restricted traffic areas and are increasingly crowded, as they are used as meeting places for commercial and recreational activities and, consequently, the sidewalks are full of tables and chairs of bars, signs, street performers, stalls and much more.

Obviously, this development makes the historic centers more vital and lively, but also more inaccessible for people with disabilities. In addition, due to the creation of limited traffic areas and cycle and pedestrian paths, the number of bicycles in circulation has increased considerably. Thus, in addition to finding bikes parked everywhere and badly, it is now common to see cyclists pedaling on the sidewalks even when they are not promiscuous. And although these practices are prohibited by the highway code, the police and the authorities - preferring bikes to cars - tend to turn a blind eye to these infractions, without considering the danger they pose to people with disabilities.

Little light and many shadows

All these problems and others, intensify in the evening and night, when daylight is replaced by artificial light, which is often too dim. Also in this case, the conservation of the old street lamps or the use of soft lights in the buildings, makes the historic centers, the streets and the old buildings more suggestive, but this type of lighting is often not sufficient for people with disabilities: for example, Deaf people always need good lighting to be able to read lips or communicate in sign language.

People people with disabilities face many problems both to move around historical centers and to access and move inside old buildings which, far from being accessible, are however the headquarters of public offices, services and commercial and recreational activities. Research has shown that in these buildings there are inaccessible bathrooms, stairs and steps with a lack of ramps or ramps that are too steep, no elevators or elevators that are too narrow or without voice indicators, dim lighting in the rooms, corridors and stairways, rooms with bad acoustics, doors that are small or too heavy, bells and handles that are too high and more.

A ramp does not harm historic cities

While recognizing its importancetherefore, it must be said that conservation generates a lack of accessibility, but it is not impossible to make these historic places and buildings accessible. The lack of accessibility often depends on a convenience approach as conservation regulations are often used as an excuse for not carrying out interventions that would break down some architectural barriers.

For accessibility in historic buildings such as castles or museums, reserved exclusively for visits of a cultural nature, the interviewees - albeit reluctantly - accept that they may have some problems or limitations and do not expect interventions of great impact on these structures. However, their opinion on historical places and on the buildings in which the activities of daily life take place is clearly different: for example, if an old building becomes the seat of commercial activities, such as an ice cream parlor or a clothing store, because the entrance does not does it have an access ramp? Especially when there are removable ones? Let's face it, is it really a step in preserving the historicity of a building? The same goes for low lighting, especially when we consider that electric light did not exist when many buildings were built.

Planning and training

To conclude, a first suggestion that comes from this research and that could help public administrators, engineers, architects and other figures involved in decision-making processes and urban design, is to carefully evaluate EX ANTE the intended use for which they are or will be. the historical components of the cities are in charge. If a XNUMXth century building is converted into a school or bank, it must be made accessible to all. Especially if we consider that disability can be acquired by anyone, even if on a temporary basis.

Second, city administrators, planners and the like should be trained in barrier-free design. Therefore, universities should activate training and refresher courses not only on the so-called design for all BUT ALSO on disability regulations. In fact, by interviewing public and private managers who work in the field of disability or with issues related to it, it emerged that they often do not know all the existing rules on accessibility and - more generally - on the protection of rights. of people with disabilities.

The solution of the participatory planning

Finally and thirdly, it is unrealistic to expect these experts or managers, despite their training, to imagine and understand the needs that arise from different types of disabilities. And the solution to the latter problem is the participatory planning,

Indeed, when people with disabilities are included in planning and design, they become even more efficient and effective because they are able to provide technical know-how technical, precisely because these users are the best experts both in their needs and in the characteristics and particularities of the territory in which they live and which requires to be modified.

Albertina Pretto

Albertina Pretto

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After graduating in Sociology at the University of Trento, he obtained a PhD in 'Psychology of Organizations: processes of inclusion and exclusion' at the University of Verona. She currently collaborates with EURCECOM (Center of Studies of the Contemporary Communication in Europe) and is a member of the Board of Directors of the Italian Society of
Sociology of Health.

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