Study of Pedestrians’ Inaccessibility in Tehran

Main objective of this paper, derived from a research conducted at the Road, Housing and Urban Development Research Center, is to provide practical guidelines for “Design criteria for Handicapped-2nd Edition”. There are persons with disabilities in all over the world with different levels of disabilities. The number of persons with disabilities in the world is large and growing. The term “disabled person” means any person who is unable to meet the necessities of a normal individual and/or social life by himself or herself, wholly or partly, as a result of a deficiency, either congenital or not, in his or her physical or mental capabilities. Adequate space should be allocated for persons using mobility devices, e.g. wheelchairs, crutches and walkers, as well as those walking with the assistance of other persons. Universal design refers to broad-spectrum ideas to produce buildings, products and environments that are inherently accessible and comfortable
for users of all abilities, ages and sense, including older people, blinds, children, people without disabilities, and people with disabilities. An accessible environment is one which a disabled person can enter and make use independently or with help from a partner or assistant, including being able to escape in sudden emergency accidents like fire. Nowadays,
accessibility and universal design for urban environment is an important issue for the governments. The barriers for different disability groups varied greatly. Universal design is the design of products and environments to be usable by all people, to the greatest extent possible, without the need for adaptation or specialized design. The pedestrian environment includes sidewalks, curb ramps, crosswalks, bus stops, signs, and street furniture. Designing the pedestrian for universal access enables persons with disabilities to live independently and lead full, enriched lives; they are able to go to work and to school, to shop, and otherwise engage in normal activities. Moreover, walking environments that accommodate people with disabilities improve walking conditions for everyone. In the recent years, the Municipality of Tehran has actively capitalized to pedestrians which are adapted for people with physical and movement disability, especially the blinds but the success rate is not high. Disabled people with requires level, clearly need easy access
and careful attention in the design and placement of pedestrians. Therefore the walking environment should be safe, inviting and accessible to people of all ages and physical abilities and seamlessly connect people to places. It should be continuous, with complete sidewalks, well-designed curb ramps, and well-designed street crossings. Providing these requirements would also satisfy the needs of all other users, especially older people, people with heavy shopping/young children, and people with temporary impairments or low levels of fitness.Therefore, the following two questions arise:
1- What are the reasons to undesirability of the adapted urban pedestrians?
2- Which are the practical or suitable solutions for improving measures?
To answer the above questions, based on the descriptive-analytical methods supported by theoretical studies, data collecting, case studies (Regions 2,3 and 6), and evaluation   of the challenges and obstacles in the urban pedestrians available in Tehran we try to explore the possibility of providing effective and relevant solutions for the current design
and adaptation of urban walkways. Finally, based on the research results, specific operational details were presented to prevent any personal preference perceptions of the existing regulations by executives as well as to provide coordination in the design and implementation of regulations on urban pedestrians, which is a factor to achieve personal independence and social rights. The results of this study revealed that despite the recent attention by authorities and planners, unobstructed, independent, safe and comfortable pedestrians are not yet accessible for all disabled people.