General accessibility plan
The City of Kuopio has received a state grant for the promotion of road safety activities from Traficom for the project “Accessibility as a cornerstone in the promotion of traffic safety in Kuopio” (Esteettömyys kivijalkana Kuopion liikenneturvallisuuden edistämisessä). The project was launched in February 2023 and will last until December 2023. The objective of the project is to promote the traffic safety of walking environments by improving their accessibility and to increase the knowledge of the city organisation and the citizens about accessible and traffic-safe solutions.
The target group of the project is older people or persons with reduced mobility or functional capacity, but accessible solutions will be traffic-safe for all citizens.
Project objective
The objective of the project is to draw up a general plan for accessibility and traffic safety. It aims to determine the walking areas and routes where a special level of accessibility is sought. The focus is on environments where older people or people with reduced mobility and functional capacity move more than usual. Plots and properties are excluded from the project. The work defines the quality criteria for infrastructure and maintenance, which must be realised at both special and basic levels. In addition, it is determined which criteria may be deviated from on a case-by-case basis for a justified reason.
The project also aims to increase the city’s planning, construction and maintenance organisation’s knowledge of accessible and traffic-safe solutions. Another objective is to increase the awareness of municipal residents of the principles and backgrounds of accessible and traffic-safe solutions. The long-term goal is to enable independent mobility of older people and persons with reduced mobility and functional capacity by creating safe and accessible solutions for different types of environments. The quantitative objective is to reduce the share of pedestrian accidents to the level of reference cities.
The draft plan will be made available in the autumn, when it will be possible to leave an opinion on it.
Sub-assemblies
Definition of routes, areas and criteria
First, those service and leisure locations that should be accessible will be identified.
Then planning instructions and quality requirements for maintenance at basic and special levels of accessibility are prepared, as well as an action plan for measures to improve accessibility. Furthermore, also areas and routes that should have a higher level of accessibility, and which special accessibility criteria are used and for what purpose, will be determined.
Accessibility surveys
Surveys of walking environments are carried out on routes that have been identified as important for accessibility:
• the city centre of Kuopio
• the suburbs: Levänen, Petonen, Männistö and Puijonlaakso
• Rural communities: Karttula, Vehmersalmi, Nilsiä, Tahko, Juankoski, Riistavesi.
Cooperation
Various stakeholders are widely involved in the project, gathering information about which destinations are those for which barrier-free accessibility is important, as well as about obstacles to movement, dangerous places and experiences about successful solutions as well. The project involves members of the council for older people and persons with disabilities; patient, disability and public health associations; cycling organisations; employees of housing units; suburban workers; and assemblies.
What does accessibility mean in an outdoor environment?
In an accessible outdoor environment:
- An accessible and safe route is visible in the walking environment
- accessible travel chain to, for example, public service locations
- accessible green and recreational areas
- people can move around the city without getting lost, colliding, falling, tripping or slipping.
Examples:
- pedestrian crossings are clear and safe
- bus stops are placed to be easily accessible and marked clearly
- traffic signs, lights, guide boards and address signs can be easily distinguished from their backgrounds
- traffic is controlled and changes in the passageway are warned about by visible and tangible guiding, warning and distinguishing markings on the ground, as well as by beeping traffic lights, for example.