Community Building Tip: Car-Free
Oct. 10th, 2020 02:11 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
ysabetwordsmithFor my current set of tips, I'm using the list "101 Small Ways You Can Improve Your City.
44. Organize a local car-free day. Every September 22 cities around the world participate in a global Car-Free Day, showcasing the possibilities of a more progressive commute and the advantages of walkable streets and biking infrastructure. Want to be inspired? Check out 14 beautiful car-free cities.
Regrettably, neither of the sites seemed to say anything about accessibility. Now if you're blind, not worrying about getting run over by a car could be a great thing. But for anyone with mobility issues, more often than not "car-free" might as well be "on the Moon." And it's not like we don't have solutions for that, I just didn't see anyone advertising things like palanquins for places where wheelchairs can't easily go. So if you're lobbying for car-free areas, remember to make them accessible to everyone. Even normally able-bodied people can be screwed the moment they break a foot, get pregnant, or have a baby carriage to push.
44. Organize a local car-free day. Every September 22 cities around the world participate in a global Car-Free Day, showcasing the possibilities of a more progressive commute and the advantages of walkable streets and biking infrastructure. Want to be inspired? Check out 14 beautiful car-free cities.
Regrettably, neither of the sites seemed to say anything about accessibility. Now if you're blind, not worrying about getting run over by a car could be a great thing. But for anyone with mobility issues, more often than not "car-free" might as well be "on the Moon." And it's not like we don't have solutions for that, I just didn't see anyone advertising things like palanquins for places where wheelchairs can't easily go. So if you're lobbying for car-free areas, remember to make them accessible to everyone. Even normally able-bodied people can be screwed the moment they break a foot, get pregnant, or have a baby carriage to push.
Re: Thank you
Date: 2020-10-10 09:39 pm (UTC)Absolutely. I feel the same way about your fiction, or the rare times I see an expert talking about (and usually getting ignored) the things I've been saying.
>> Different in the details, different suggested solutions, but the core idea is, "Hey, you're forgetting this whole group of people!" <<
I'd be interested in hearing your solutions too, in case I'm ever in a position to deploy them. My first approach to inclusion is usually "How do you want to do this?" but having a list of "Would any of these accommodations help?" is also handy. Not everyone can think of solutions off the top of their head.
>> THAT kind of inclusion is one of the reasons that I'd run to T-America if I had the chance. <<
Yeah, me too. I covet their introvert parties, especially at big events like weddings.