More than half of Spaniards (52%) would have difficulty getting around in a wheelchair through the common areas of the building in which they reside, while 55% would have problems moving inside their home. This is what the report states The Voice of Accessibilityprepared by the Mutual Owners Foundation with the aim of showing the day-to-day life of more than 2.4 million Spaniards with reduced mobilityof which 270,000 (11%) are over 65 years of age.
The organization maintains that these architectural barriers would be difficult to solve for 40% of Spaniards due to the complication of getting all neighbors to agree, especially if the investment in adaptation works exceeds 2,000 euros per neighbor.
“Reduced mobility is one of the main problems of the elderly and, therefore, it is essential that the communities of owners are aware of the need to make buildings accessible to facilitate the lives of the elderly, contributing to creating a more inclusive society”, highlighted the director of the Mutua de Propietarios Foundation, Cristina Pallàs.
For this group, the difficulties in moving freely do not only appear in the common spaces of their block or home. Accessing public buildings, crossing pedestrian crossings, moving on public transport or even walking on sidewalks, “are actions that They also entail great difficulty“, according to the organization.
For this reason, the accessibility of Spanish municipalities is rated with a suspense (4.7) among those who have mobility problems and according to the report The Voice of Accessibilityaccesses to public buildings are the best rated in terms of accessibility (5.65), since many have ramps or elevatorsfollowed by pedestrian crossings (5.61), and adapted public transport, valued with a 5.25. Finally, with a suspense (4.4) the sidewalks remain, due to their lack of width and poor condition.
Despite this, four out of every five Spaniards are not considering changing their place of residence for these reasons, since they consider that the rest of the localities are in the same situation in terms of accessibility. “Although society is aware of the existence of architectural barriers, it is not fully aware of how difficult these obstacles can be to function in the daily lives of people with difficulties when moving, which is why awareness-raising actions social results fundamental to achieve full equality of rights,” said Cristina Pallàs.
The report from the Mutua de Propietarios Foundation also explores how Spanish society perceives the daily lives of people with reduced mobility. In this sense, playing sports (87%), traveling (84%), getting on public transport (76%), shopping (74%), or carrying out daily tasks (73%) are the actions that entail more difficulty to do in a wheelchair. “Accessibility shouldn’t be a luxurybut a tool so that everyone can fully participate in society”, added Cristina Pallàs.
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