23 October 1997 (Thu)

Accessibility in the Community
by
Mr. Ikuo Osuga
Wakakoma Information Center for Independent Living

A. Current Situation1. Housing Accessibility

1. Housing Accessibility

Houses which disabled persons live in are classified roughly into owned houses, high-rise apartment buildings, private apartment houses for rent, and public housing projects. For a person who lives in a house or an apartment/condominium owned by himself/herself or his/her family, it is possible to some extent to add some improvement by means of paying cash or utilizing a subsidy system for housing improvement so that he/she can live more comfortably. Most of ordinary public apartment houses are walk-ups with low accessibility. In recent years, however, high-rise apartment buildings have become more accessible and four- or five-story low apartment buildings also tend to be installed with elevators in anticipation of the aging society. Public houses for wheelchair users are given some consideration such as doorways with higher accessibility and easy-to-use bathrooms and kitchens. However, most of such public houses are for those who live with their parents, children or spouse; there are only a few of them for those who live alone. Consequently, disabled persons who want to live independently from their parents or facilities are able to live only in private apartment houses for rent. However, there are almost none of apartment houses for rent designed for wheelchair users: they are so scarce that a couple of such apartment houses constructed in the metropolitan area have been picked up by media in recent years. Both doorways and bathrooms are difficult to use for wheelchair users. It is impossible to alter an apartment without approval of the owner. In addition, many owners are reluctant to rent to disabled persons. Therefore, disabled persons are facing the reality that they have to make the rounds of several dozens of realtors to find a private apartment for rent.

2. Street Accessibility

The movement to build a community with amenity in Japan was, in plain words, started with elimination of steps. It was actually 27 years ago that disabled persons and young volunteers in Sendai city placed a board as a ramp to cover the steps in front of a department store in the city. This incident was featured by media, and the news set fire to disabled persons nationwide. Disabled persons, who had been dissatisfied with the situation in which they could not go out to the community, began to measure the heights of steps of streets and doorways of buildings, and appealed in front of TV cameras how great difficulties were caused by such steps. Several years later, the Ministry of Construction issued a notice to cut down sidewalk steps, which thereafter were rapidly eliminated in every part of the nation. It seems at present that most of sidewalk steps have been converted into ramps. However, except for newly constructed streets and broad sidewalks, many of sidewalks are bumpy and difficult to pass. The reasons: the ramp is too steep even though the step has been eliminated; the sidewalk is too narrow; the sidewalk has an entrance for automobiles; and the street, which has been improved with effort, deteriorates again because of dig-up construction works to lay water pipes and other facilities underground. Moreover, there are quite a few national highways without sidewalks. Under these circumstances, review and improvement of sidewalks are still under way.

On sidewalks laid are Braille bricks for blind and visually handicapped persons, facility peculiar to Japan. Braille bricks are classified into two types: caution-giving bricks which tell about stairs and distinguish between sidewalks and roads; and guide bricks which lead from a station to welfare facilities along the street. These Braille bricks are laid not only on streets but also on platforms and in public buildings in order to keep blind and visually handicapped persons from falling off platforms and stairs. However, there is no nationally unified standards on the shape of bricks. Furthermore, it is still a controversial problem to determine the extent to which guide bricks are necessary.

There are some traffic signals for blind and visually handicapped persons at crosswalks, which have a device to distinguish between the green light between the red light by means of music or chime. Recently, this device has been further advanced: using ultra-short waves, the device built in the white cane gives chime or voice when a signal gets close.

3. Accessibility of Public Buildings

In 1974, Machida city, Tokyo established the "Outline for Environmental Improvement to Build a Welfare Community", which pioneered in legal arrangement to build a community with disabled and elderly persons in consideration. The Ministry of Health and Welfare designated model cities to build a welfare community, while other municipalities also formulated similar outlines and guidelines for improvement. Although these outlines and guidelines are not legally binding, buildings related with administrative organizations have been gradually improved and, furthermore, private buildings with quasi-public function, such as department stores, have been also improved. Examples of improvement during the '70s and the '80s were given to individual buildings and were for wheelchair users.

In the '90s, public opinion arose in every part of the nation to call for establishment of ordinances with stronger legal binding force than outlines. Triggered by the ordinances to build a community with amenity established by Hyogo and Osaka prefectures, similar ordinances have come into effect in various municipalities. At the national level, established in 1994 was "the Act on Buildings Accessible and Usable for the Elderly and Physically Disabled". These measures forced quasi-public buildings of 500 square meters or more in area to secure accessibility. In fact, in case of newly constructed buildings, doorways, passages and restrooms are accessible, and it is easy to move from one floor to another. In addition to improvement of individual buildings, based on the idea which regards a community as a plane face, efforts have been started to make streets and buildings totally accessible. On the contrary, however, there still are problems to solve: for example, small and medium-sized public buildings are excluded from such measures; also excluded are transportation facilities and educational facilities because they are under the auspices of different ministries and agencies.

Moreover, after the '90s, there have been more examples of efforts to improve accessibility from the viewpoint not only of physical structure but also of service. For example, the department store and super market industry is making efforts, besides improvement of buildings and store floors, to draw up service manuals which instruct employees how to serve customers who are blind and visually handicapped or with hearing impairment, as well as those in the wheelchair, and to train clerks who can use sign language. At some restaurants, on the other hand, a menu is read aloud for blind and visually handicapped persons, or a Braille menu is prepared. This tendency, which accepts a disabled person as a customer with peculiar needs rather than handles him/her in a special manner apart from ordinary customers, is a step forward to the philosophy of normalization. In addition, the concept to include not only wheelchair users but also those with various kinds of disability may lead to social participation of persons with mental retardation or disorder who are more strongly discriminated against.

4. Accessibility of Transportation and Traffic

(1) Wheelchairs and Electric Wheelchairs
In the area of daily life activities, disabled persons move mainly on foot, in the wheelchair or in the electric one.
Electric wheelchairs started to be in use about 20 years ago, and since International Year of Disabled Persons (IYDP) of 1981, increasing number of persons with severe motor disability, influenced by the movement for independent living in the U.S., have been going out in the electric wheelchair also in Japan. Nowadays there are many elderly persons who use electric wheelchairs. In addition, electric wheelchairs imported from the U.S. and Europe have been on the rise for several years, replacing domestically produced ones.

(2) Taxis
About 25 years ago, the movement to build a welfare community arose and improvement measures were pushed forward through eliminating steps on the streets, making buildings accessible and installing toilets for wheelchairs. During the time when there were few disabled wheelchair users who use trains or buses, although the only mode of transportation for them was a taxi, they were often refused to get in despite their necessity. At the same time, it was none other than the taxi industry that promptly accepted them as customers with the international symbol mark put on the car door. However, it is basically difficult for wheelchair users to get in a taxi because of its structure, and as other modes of transportation have become easier to use, the ratio of those who use taxis has been declining. So taxi companies have introduced the station wagon with a lift (welfare taxi) which can be used by wheelchair users, and 800 such wagons are currently in operation nationwide.

(3) Transportation Service
During the time when public transportation was difficult to use, social welfare councils and voluntary bodies of disabled persons and volunteers started transportation service by means of station wagons equipped with the ramp or the lift. Financially supported by corporate foundations and administrative organizations, municipalities have set up similar bodies, which are currently estimated to reach 700 to 800 in number nationwide. A certain amount is charged as service fee in some municipalities, whereas service is offered for nothing in others. The operation is subsidized by the administrative organization in some municipalities, whereas volunteers cooperate to offer this service without any financial assistance. As door-to-door transportation, this service is popular among electric wheelchair users and others who cannot use taxis or public transportation.

(4) Trains and Subways
The efforts which were started in the '70s to improve community environment did not pay much attention to transportation. As for both trains and buses, typical modes of public transportation, it was considered impossible to improve the station filled with stairs and bus steps. After the '80s, however, influenced by the fundamental idea of International Year of Disabled Persons (IYDP) which defines that a person's handicap is not attributable to his/her disability but to social environment and by the movement for independent living, increasing number of disabled persons began to aim at independent living in the community. Along with this trend, trains and buses have come to be used more frequently. At the beginning, when a wheelchair user asked a station employee for help before the stairs at the railway station, problems often happened between them, and in many case, passengers were asked to help him/her. After a long time, however, railway companies have established a basic attitude to let their employees to handle the matter. In addition, improvement of station facilities, conversion of stairs into elevators, in particular, has been gradually undertaken. In 1991 and 1993, the Ministry of Transport finally took a step to formulate guidelines on installation of escalators and elevators in stations, and improvement of accessibility of stations has come to be speeded up. Although newly constructed lines and stations with large-scale renovation have accessible station buildings from the beginning, improvement of existing railway and subway stations is not in good progress.
On the other hand, some ordinary seats have been replaced by space for wheelchairs in the train car, and restrooms for wheelchairs have been installed in the express train car.
Measures for those other than wheelchair users have also become common: Braille bricks on the platform and Braille fare tables for blind and visually handicapped persons; and bulletin boards which indicate the destination and the next stop.

(5) Buses
Although buses are the most familiar mode of transportation, they have been dawdling along in improvement of accessibility until now. For persons with motor disability, buses have long been the most inconvenient mode of transportation. The reason was the difference between the road surface and the bus floor ranging from 70 to 80 centimeters. In the '90s, however, stimulated by ADA of the U.S., public opinion rapidly arose to call for buses with the lift in operation also in Japan. As a result, buses with the lift or the ramp started to run in every part of the nation. This year, more convenient non-step buses (with the floor only 30 centimeters above the road surface) started operation. These accessible buses, however, account only for 1 to 2% of the total number of buses.

B. Driving Force of Factors Improvement of Accessibility

1) Power of citizens including disabled persons
2) Support by experts
3) Awareness of the aging society
4) Changes in corporate mind

C. Future Problems for Accessibility in the Community

1)Physical aspect and service-oriented (mental) aspect
2)Integration with mobility
3)Amenity

D. Brief History of Environmental Improvement of Accessibility

1971 "Citizen Group to Build a Welfare Community" is launched in Sendai city.
1972 Improvement measures for wheelchair user are given to Sendai Station.
Machida city starts operation of a bus with the lift named "Yamayuri".
1973 The Ministry of Health and Welfare designates model cities for the welfare of disabled persons.
The Ministry of Construction issues a notice to cut down steps of sidewalks.
1974 Machida city enacts the outline for improvement of welfare environment.1975 The Ministry of Health and Welfare starts issuance of electric wheelchairs.
1976 Kyoto city establishes the "Outline for Improvement of Buildings and Environment to Build a Welfare Community".
Sixty disabled persons in the wheelchair act in protest against a bus company's attitude.
1979 The Ministry of Health and Welfare starts the program for promotion of welfare cities for disabled persons.
1983 Japan National Railways mandates installation of Braille bricks.
The Ministry of Transport draws up "Guideline on Facilities for Physically Disabled Persons at Public Transportation Terminals".
1985 The Ministry of Construction establishes the guideline on installation of guide bricks for blind and visually handicapped persons.
1988 Tokyo establishes the "Guideline for Improvement to Build a Welfare Community".
1989 Tokyo starts the program to assist improvement of the model districts to build a welfare community.
1990 Kanagawa prefecture and Hyogo prefecture amend the construction standard ordinances (to include welfare-related clauses).
The Ministry of Transport formulates the model design concerning the structure of public transportation vehicles for elderly and disabled persons.
1991 Osaka city and Kyoto city start operation of buses with the lift.
The Ministry of Transport establishes the guideline for improvement and installation of escalators at railway stations.
1992 Yokohama city, Kobe city and Tokyo start operation of buses with the lift.
Yokohama city and Osaka prefecture amend the construction standard ordinances.
Hyogo prefecture and Osaka prefecture establish the ordinance to build a welfare community.
1993 Yamanashi prefecture establishes the ordinance on happy living for disabled persons.
Machida city establishes the ordinance on integrated promotion of a welfare community.
The Ministry of Transport establishes the guideline for improvement and installation of escalators at railway stations.
1994 The Ministry of Construction establishes the Act on Buildings Accessible and Usable for the Elderly and Physically Disabled.
The Ministry of Health and Welfare starts the program to promote a community friendly to disabled and elderly persons.
The Ministry of Transport starts the program to assist improvement and installment of elevators and escalators.
"Organization for Promotion of Traffic Amenity" (a foundational juridical person) is launched.

From "Resource Book of Training Course for Leaders of Persons with Disabilities 1997"

Japanese Society for Rehabilitation of Disabled Persons