Budování strategie přístupnosti města
Building strategy for urban accessibility

Author(s): Ondřej Šerý, Robert Osman
Subject(s): Public Administration, Social differentiation, Rural and urban sociology
Published by: Masarykova univerzita nakladatelství
Keywords: urban accessibility; accessibility policies; senior citizens; wheelchair users; accessibility for all social groups;
Summary/Abstract: The sixth chapter describes the making of a concrete document for a designated time, i.e., the Strategic plan for gradual removal of barriers in 2021—2030, which was created for the Brno City Advisory Board for Accessibility. The authors chose to introduce it via the perspective of a dialogic space that enables to organize the procedure composed from a variety of voices, opinions, and arguments. The heteroglossia metaphor is exemplified by the concept of “carnival” of Mikhail Mikhailovich Bakhtin, when “strangers” speaking in different “voices” are brought together. At the beginning, there were activities by several individuals mostly from NGO and academic environment, who started to integrate and institutionalize accessibility policies. For the latter, political support of established actors was necessary, and thanks to it, the above-mentioned Advisory Board was founded. Therefore, the positions of the bursar and the chair of the board are labeled “victorious voices” in our “carnival”. Subsequently, the semi-structured interviews tried to determine visions, attitudes and priorities of all involved persons, namely “the voices of Advisory board members”. Their strategic plan defined target groups, on whom the accessibility policies would focus (senior citizens, parents with strollers, wheelchair users and people with sight or hearing impairment). At the same time, the “legislative voices” needed to be respected, which were to ensure accessibility for all social groups. The principles of tactical urbanism were used to make space accessible within functional wholes and according to societal needs.

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