Marissa Bell’s Post

Got questions about adopting and implementing PROWAG guidelines? Our friends at Polara are the experts! Pro tip: they offer a downloadable PROWAG factsheet with key updates, highlighting requirements for both MUTCD and PROWAG.

Here's a fantastic article about the U.S. Department of Transportation's proposed rule adopting PROWAG, perfect to start your morning with. One note: DOT's rule will only affect transit stops in the public right of way - for everything else, we're all waiting for the U.S. Department of Justice to make their own rule adopting PROWAG!

Our latest episode featuring the incredible Andy Barrow is live. As the world gears up for the Paris 2024 Paralympic Games, we’re diving into a conversation that goes far beyond the sporting arena. Andy Barrow, a former Paralympian turned disability rights advocate, joins us to share his powerful insights on the ongoing fight for accessibility and inclusion. In this episode, we explore: - Andy’s journey from elite sport to advocacy and what inspired him to become a leading voice for disability rights. - The real challenges still faced by disabled individuals in today’s society and why accessibility is not just a convenience but a necessity. - The importance of co-production and why involving disabled people in the design and decision-making process is crucial for real change. - Actionable steps we can all take to create a more inclusive world, whether in public spaces, workplaces, or communities. #DisabilityRights #Inclusion #Accessibility #Podcast #Empowerment #Paris2024 #wayfinding #signage #claro

Whitehorse hit with class action lawsuit. Barriers presented by the city’s alleged inaction and discriminatory policies have caused the plaintiffs to feel like they are second-class citizens. The lawsuit alleges the city is violating the plaintiffs’ rights as described in the Charter of Rights and Freedom’s sections 7 and 15. The sections guarantee all have the right to life, liberty and security of person, as well as the right to equality before the law, respectively. Well done Ramesh and Eva for holding the City accountable for their obligations. 👏🏽 #equalacess #accessiblecanada #barrierfreecanada2040 #accessibility #humanright

🚦This Tuesday, a #focusgroup with representatives from diverse advocacy and expert organizations working on street diversity, inclusion, and equity was organized by University of Amsterdam and Politecnico di Torino with the support of Fondazione LINKS as part of our commitment to co-creation in JUST STREETS! 💬 “Nothing without us!” This is a motto that resonates in our partners’ work. We cannot work on just streets if these streets are not envisioned together with people who have been neglected from urban planning over time. We organized participants into three rooms, allowing everyone to fully engage and feel safe. Here are some key takeaways from the discussion, which we commit to fully integrating into our interventions: 🔵 Justice through design: It’s essential to understand the sensory and emotional experience of streets as a matter of justice. People with intellectual disabilities, for example, are often forgotten in urban policies. They struggle to navigate noisy and chaotic environments. 🔵 Safe spaces for all: Families, children, and disabled people often avoid streets due to feelings of danger, which aren’t accounted for in typical data collection. 🔵 Rethinking urban design: Planners need to address harassment and anti-social behavior through physical street design while eliminating discriminatory elements, like hostile architecture. 🔵 A call for street justice in political arena: It’s time to shift the conversation from bans to rights—creating streets that are not just safe, but inviting for everyone. 🔵 From landscapes to sensescapes: Planners need to better understand the different sensescapes and affective environments of the city. 🤝 As a participant said "We have accepted unsafe and unsustainable streets as normal and inevitable. Yet, we know the proven solutions to fix them". At JUST STREETS, we will ensure to work alongside, because “Nothing without you”. Thanks to all the associations participating in the workshop: @RevoltaEscolar Global Alliance of NGOs for Road Safety International Federation of Pedestrians Inclusion Europe @Institut Escola Projecte YOURS Mobiel 21 FEANTSA @Kove European Network on Independent Living Pedestrian Space @Associació Famílies Escola Jaume 1r @BACC - Bicicleta club de Catalunya Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona Autism-Europe aisbl European Cyclists' Federation @Street for kids HOGAR SÍ European Disability Forum Walk21 Foundation

Can you build a granny flat as SDA? Should/would you? Generally no. A granny flat in NSW is limited to 60m2 between external walls, so about 56m2 of internal living space. A granny flat isn't big enough to be a practical SDA home. Don't do it! By all means make an adaptable or accessible granny flat. It won't qualify as an SDA dwelling but might be the perfect home for someone with reduced mobility.

This is Urban planning without any thought of Universal Design or Disability Access %& Inclusion. Wide footpaths with no guidance, Sheffield Bikes Stands on the footpath. Which means people cycle on the footpath to get to and leave them. Fact. Obvious too if you understand that people take their desire line. Stopping on the road and walking to the stands would never occur to most people. Look at them anywhere they are on footpaths and watch what happens. This is "Pretty Bot Practical" Urban Planning. Street Hierarchy which says, Pedestrians Safety First, is ignored, and Dmurs, the design regulations ignored. Or else they green wash it, saying it is green so it is all good. That is called Eco Ableism. I had to Google the word as the Greens used to be all socially Inclusive, but have left the disability community behind. If you don't believe me I have dozens of documents to show this. Weird place The Beacon Court Quarter, some really inclusive design, meters away from some Disability Endangering Design. Like part of the team understood Universal Design and the others did not. One side of the road has tactile paving on uncontrolled crossings, the other does not. #UrbanDesignFails #DisabilityInclusion #UNCRPD #CEUD #UniversalDesign

A similar case presenting the importance of landings was discussed on a particular footpath. With looming design constraints from Cycle infrastructure design LTN 1/20, existing tie-in requirements to an over bridge, a landing platform was one suggestion to ensure that the 30m desirable length of gradient 5% was not exceeded. The implementation of a landing may also help in reducing both ascending and descending speeds of NMU's especially, providing safer bridleways.

Today’s Civitas Forum Session 17 explored the challenge of creating universally accessible urban mobility. 🌍 Participants discussed: - The concept of Mobility as a Right 🚶♀️👍 - Ways to listen to stakeholders and collect data 🗣️📊 - Co-creation processes for inclusive mobility services 🤝🚍 Read more about a city committed to accessibility: https://ow.ly/2rb350TC66l #CF2024 #UrbanMobility #InclusiveMobility

Check out this article that my brilliant colleague and friend, Rachael Thomas, wrote in light of Global Accesibility Awareness Day #GAAD! As I learned today during the University of Leeds’ Digital Education Network GAAD event, we will never be able to make our work fully accessible - there will always be new things to learn and individual experiences to consider. However, we can still do many things to make our content and work more accessible. Let’s take a moment to reflect on how we can make our work more accessible. 💪🏽 Need somewhere to start? Check out: https://lnkd.in/ejdysA-J