The document was presented today at a meeting of the Committee on Accessibility of Public and Residential Facilities at Lviv City Council. The committee includes heads of all structural units of the city hall, heads of district administrations, representatives of public organizations, and deputies.
According to Iryna Maruniak, Lviv City Council Commissioner for Accessibility and Chair of the Committee, the Strategy covers all areas of life and everyday life of people with reduced mobility. Its goal is to create a favorable environment and provide all opportunities and conditions for people with limited mobility and people with disabilities to exercise their rights, receive quality services, and have the opportunity for self-realization and work.
“Even in peacetime, there is a significant percentage of people with limited mobility in society who need an inclusive environment. And in times of war, this percentage increases as the number of people with disabilities grows. Therefore, the state and society, as a manifestation of respect for the dignity of such persons, must provide them with the proper conditions for access to all necessary services and opportunities for self-realization, such as education and work. Therefore, creating a barrier-free environment should cover all areas of our lives. Starting from the ability to leave your own apartment, get to a public transport stop, use this transport, get to the institution you need – whether it is an institution that provides a certain service – an ASC, a hospital, or a cultural or educational institution – a theater, a university, or a place of work.
Therefore, the document that we managed to develop shows the directions in which we will work in terms of barrier-free accessibility. These are:
– physical barrier-free access;
– information accessibility;
– digital accessibility;
– social and civic inclusion;
– educational accessibility;
– economic accessibility.
Therefore, the developed Strategy provides for specific implementation measures – concrete steps to be taken by the responsible departments,” says Iryna Maruniak.
Next, this document will be submitted for consideration and approval by the Lviv City Council, after discussion and approval by specialized deputy commissions.
In accordance with the objectives of the Strategy for the Creation and Development of Barrier-Free Space, Lviv will actively work to
– ensuring physical accessibility of places of residence, work, goods sales and service facilities in various areas;
– ensuring the physical accessibility of the street network, public spaces and recreational facilities;
– ensuring accessibility of public transport and transport infrastructure.
This includes the installation of ramps and lifts in buildings, the arrangement of colorless spaces near buildings and at public transport stops, accessible, low-floor transport, and the installation of accessibility elements in specific institutions.
“In the area of digital and information accessibility, we will work to ensure the availability of public information, electronic services, increase the level of accessibility of cultural, educational, sports and media content, increase the number of events in the socio-economic life of community residents that are captioned, translated into sign language and audio description (audio commentary).
Educational and economic barrier-free access will involve creating conditions to meet the unique educational needs of people with limited mobility and disabilities, and providing opportunities for them to work, engage in entrepreneurial activities, develop, etc.
It is important for us that our work has a good result for people in need and that our city is as accessible as possible. Because a person with limited mobility or a person with a disability should be able to live fully in an inclusive environment. This is what our Strategy is about. So we have a lot of work to do,” adds Iryna Maruniak.