live in their shoes
Tuesday, April 04, 2006
this week and last have seen metro strikes in madrid. this generally means being squished into someone's (normally smelly) armpit as you both try to hold the same part of handrail.
but this morning, another problem of the strikes was highlighted to me by a blind girl. i find it incredible how blind people learn to move around with such apparent ease; especially on and off escalators and trains. happily walking to the metro turnstiles, this girl walked smack into a 3ft movable sign (placed directly in the path to the metro gates) informing passengers about the strikes.
coincidentally, on the tv news this morning, a wheelchair bound man has started a website containing photos of obstructions he encounters on his daily business. the pictures he had could have been of any spanish street. bricks, skips, fences, plantpots, cars, steps, buckets, pipes - all lying on the street because it's a convenient place for their owner to put it.
although not perfect in england, accessibility for disabled people has been improved quite a lot in recent years. these things proved to me that sometimes, this country is still sooo backward.
but this morning, another problem of the strikes was highlighted to me by a blind girl. i find it incredible how blind people learn to move around with such apparent ease; especially on and off escalators and trains. happily walking to the metro turnstiles, this girl walked smack into a 3ft movable sign (placed directly in the path to the metro gates) informing passengers about the strikes.
coincidentally, on the tv news this morning, a wheelchair bound man has started a website containing photos of obstructions he encounters on his daily business. the pictures he had could have been of any spanish street. bricks, skips, fences, plantpots, cars, steps, buckets, pipes - all lying on the street because it's a convenient place for their owner to put it.
although not perfect in england, accessibility for disabled people has been improved quite a lot in recent years. these things proved to me that sometimes, this country is still sooo backward.
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