Despite laws and policies, new building projects are still creating barriers that exclude people with disability. So where does it all go wrong? Urban design choices essential to ensure a universal design outcome are left too late in the process to deal with them. Conflicts between city departments as well as city and private developer goals are part of the problem. Their goals don’t match.
“…it was clear that the earlier phases, especially the planning and projecting phase, were critical, where most decisions and design choices took place that could result in either an inclusive or exclusive design.”
Three Swedish researchers delved into the design choices made in the the development of major built environment projects. They wanted to find out when universal design concepts fell through the gaps.
Conflicting visions and goals in the design process
The researchers found that the city itself had clear competing goals between private and public interests. There were even different views and goals within different departments about desirable design choices.
There are conflicts between the amount and the quality of urban development and how an ideal densified city should be designed. This is a serious challenge to universal design solutions as well as basic accessibility.
Balancing conflicts of interests and ideas between green and socially sustainable development also arose in the research. Urban design trends also challenge design choices that support universal design.
“There is no focus on who will live in the new homes, only how many new citizens the city will get.” This does not support the obligations for the Sustainable Development Goals, or the UN Convention for people with disability.
Image from the research paper
The research paper includes examples with photos to explain how universal design would have been easy and cost effective to include from the outset. They conclude with seven recommendations, many of which are based on education and coordination of effort.
Refurbishment projects, however, appear to be better at including universal design concepts. Perhaps experience is not an educator – the rectifications on one project do not always result in better outcomes next time.
The title of the paper is Visions of a City for All. Resources, Choices and Factors Supporting and Impeding Universal Design in the Urban Development Process.
From the abstract
Despite laws, policies and visions to create cities and societies for all, barriers still exclude people with disability from using buildings and public places. We wanted to find out what choices were made and when they were made in the development process. We also wanted to know how and when these choices arise during the process. Our other question was what is needed to implement universal design as a strategy to include everyone.
The study involved employees and private actors in city development processes. They were asked to identify impediments and support of universal design in completed building projects. We wanted to know what choices were made and in what conditions universal design could be implemented in the process.
The analysis was based on qualitative data from workshops and interviews. The findings show that accessibility for all users is dealt with (too) late in the process, often giving rise to special solutions.
Urban trends such as densification and high exploitation can cause the exclusion of some users. An unbalanced view of sustainable development that prioritises ecological aspects puts high demands on users’ abilities.
The findings also show that universal design appears more clearly in remodelling projects than in new constructions. Other factors such as pre-studies that include human diversity, allocation of resources and experts’ early opinions also prove to be clear drivers for universal design. We conclude by providing seven recommendations for addressing these challenges.