Accountability of Urban Spaces to the Disabled Person’s Needs (Case Study: Ferdowsi Street in Sanandaj)

Document Type : Research article

Authors

1 PhD of Geography & Urban Planning, Department of Urban Planning, Islamic Azad University, Isfahan (Khorasgan) Branch, Iran

2 MA in Urban Planning, Higher education institution of Noor–E Hedayat, Shahrekord, Iran

Abstract

Introduction
Nowadays, making urban spaces appropriate and improving the accessibility and mobility of persons with disabilities have an important role in urban planning and design. The individuals with physical disability have the image of the city, and not able to establish normal relations with others. Disabled persons are not specific and distinctive, but they want a very common communication just like healthy persons in social relationships. But the important thing is that urban public spaces for the traffic of this group are not appropriate. Because the condition of our cities, streets, sidewalks, public places, welfare spaces, health services, urban transportation systems, etc., usability does not provide it for the target group. Accordingly, the evaluation of urban public spaces in order to meet the needs of the disabled and to prevent their isolation, is one of the requirements of every society especially our society, which has been faced with a large number of persons with disabilities after the imposed war in Iran.
Methodology
The type of this research in terms of target is applied and its methodology is analytic-descriptive. For collecting the data, the library and survey method were used. By specifying the related parameters and variables, the questions of questionnaire were written and the questionnaire was distributed among the samples of research. The population of this study includes all physically disabled persons in Sanandaj city. The total number of physically disabled persons in Sanandaj in 2016 was 1818 people. These people have been examined in three groups of disabled with leg defects, amputation of leg and trunk defects. Using Cochran sampling method with standard division of 5% and a confidence coefficient of 95 percentages, a sample of the total population was estimated 317 people. To select the samples, stratified sampling method was used. In this study, each of the three groups (leg defects, amputation of leg and trunk defects) was considered as the study classes. The sampling method for all of the classes was simple random sampling method. Then for data analysis, testing methods such as T test and linear regression by SPSS software were used.
Results and discussion
In this study, in order to make urban public spaces appropriate, we used five main indicators including sidewalks, communication bridges and accesses, urban transport, equipment and furniture as well as buildings and public places. In the index of sidewalks, the main variables are longitudinal and transverse slope of the pavements, existence of stairs on the pavement, existence of building materials in pavement, existence of inappropriate flooring on the pavement and etc.. The factors related to communication bridges and accesses index are in the variables such as lack of bridge between the sidewalk and the street in a long way, low width of communication bridges, high Slope of communication bridges, disconnection of the communication bridge with the street, existence of a great distance between the bridges fences and etc.. For urban transport system index, we also used the variables including inappropriate bus and taxi stations, difference in level between the station and vehicles, inappropriate doors of the public vehicles for enter of the disabled with wheelchair and etc.. In the following, for evaluation of index of urban equipment and furniture, we also used variables including high altitude of signs and advertising in the city and the lack of perspective of the person sitting, inappropriate installation of ATM and their high altitudes, inappropriate width and lack of suitable ramps, Unusable rest benches in public places and spaces for physically disabledand etc., were used. Finally, to assess of indexofbuildings and public places, variables such as existence of stairs between the street and the entrance of public buildings, lack of ramp (slope level) at the entrance of buildings and public places, inappropriate slope of ramps in buildings and public places and so on were used. As mentioned above, in order to survey and evaluation of these indicators, analyzing methods such as T test and linear regression were employed.
Conclusion
This study aimed to evaluate the evaluation ofmaking appropriate use of urban public spaces for access of disabled persons in Ferdowsi Street in Sanandaj, as the case study. The results of the study using T-test and comparison of means shows that all indices were lower than the average standard, but nevertheless it is the highest mean obtained for the index of urban furniture (2/23) and the lowest mean for the public transport system index (1/1). None of the evaluated spaces in study area in terms of adaptation for the disabled are not in the favorable condition. Thus, the transportation system and public places and buildings had the most severe state of dissatisfaction and indices of sidewalks, communication bridges and urban furniture and equipment are ranked next. This has led to the isolation and lack of participation of disabled persons in urban social activities. This was confirmed by the use of regression analysis (correlation coefficient 0.641). Eliminating these barriers requires measures that ensure greater participation of disabled persons in their community's affairs. In order to make urban spaces appropriate for access of disabled persons and attention to their needs, the following suggestions are presented:
- organizing vendors and determine the specific location for them.
-  filling of the holes and post and the heights to prevent of the overthrow of personswith the wheelchair.
- Makeing appropriate and standardizing of connecting bridges between the sidewalk and the street.
- Makeing appropriate of urban public transportation for the disabled persons.

Keywords

References

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Geographical Urban Planning Research (GUPR)
Volume 7, Issue 3
October 2019
Pages 509-532

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