Orihuela Without Barriers laments the Municipal 'Brake' as regards Accessibility

The association 'Orihuela Without Barriers' yesterday made a summary of municipal management on the subject of accessibility, which has underlined what in its view is "a brake" in the last two years in the actions of local government to eliminate barriers, as required by the legislation, architectural barriers.

Representatives stressed the deficiences in the management in the Council Departments of Transportation, Commerce, Education and Planning.

Miguel Ros, and Carmen Diaz, the representatives of the group denounced the lack of accessible buses not only for those with lack of mobility, but for the older person and for baby pushchairs, such as the service to Torremendo or the pedanías (villages), where users have to overcome three steps to enter.

Furthermore, the association affirms that new urban areas are being developed "without dropped kerb pavement accesses" which is then a cost to city coffers to amend them, and called for the adoption of a bye-law to this effect by exploiting the decline in construction activity.

In the town centre of the pedanía de Los Huertos they request the removal of barriers that cause difficulty for the residents to move about the only access pavement in the town, and actions in the streets Luis Barcala, Limon, Valencia and Castellon. In the latter road there has been the "absurd" case of a workshop that installed dropped kerbs only to have them removed by later work.

Nor has it (the council) controlled the shops that do not comply with the law on accessibility. A claim answered by an advisor to the Council on the grounds that "if you wanted to leave the street to all parents who have a trade in Orihuela", said Carmen Diaz, who recalled that the Mayor Lorente has not met with them as she promised and has abolished the council department for Acessibility.

Diaz criticized the new offices of the Delegation of Education at the Plaza Teniente Linares as not being accessible and being in need of a ramp and lift.

Translation of an article in on the 08/05/2009

Agua Marina Paseo Marítimo

During the full monthly meeting of the Orihuela Town Council (Pleno) held on Tuesday 31st. March 2009 the matter of the failure by the Council to provide easy and safe access to the promenade for persons who either need to use a wheelchair or other walking aids was raised during the duscussion about the new bye-law in respect of the beaches of Orihuela Costa.

The PP Councillor for the Coast, Clr. Aniorte promised as a matter of urgency to modify the access to the Agua Marina promenade and then gradually the other accesses that do not conform to the law.

We will have to wait and see what his definition of a matter of urgency is!

Violation of the Law of Accessibility

The following links are to interesting articles that appeared in today's Spanish newspaper La Verdad about the violation of the Law of Accessibility in the Orihuela Municipality.

http://www.laverdad.es/alicante/20090216/orihuela/denuncia-incumplimiento-accesibilidad-multiples-20090216.html

http://www.laverdad.es/alicante/20090216/orihuela/queja-extiende-plazas-reformadas-20090216.html

The articles refer to the observations made by Los Verdes to the inadequacies of free access for people with reduced mobility within the Municipality. The failure of the PP controlled Council to ensure that the correct access facilities are provided is highlighted with examples of the ommission of ramps where needed, and of narrow pavements putting pedestrians in danger from traffic.

It is further pointed out that amendments put forward by Los Verdes to the 2009 Budget in respect of funds to provide the access needed for the less mobile were rejected by the PP without any explaination. This is a Council that hopes to get the designation of 'Grand Ciudad' for the town, and yet forgets to solve the day to day problems for people with disabilities.

Access Discrimination in Orihuela Ayuntamiento.

Today (10th December 2008) the Los Verdes and PSOE Opposition Parties issued a joint press release to highlight the inadequate facilities that the Governing PP provide to the Opposition Parties in the Orihuela Town Hall, in that there is no access to the parties official offices in the building for disabled persons.

This is discrimination against persons with disabilities in that it restricts their access to their elected Councillors.

On Tuesday the 9th December the two parties held a meeting with various groups from Orihuela to collect and discuss their proposals for the future Citizen Participation Regulation. At the last minute the location of the meeting had to be changed so as to accommodate the attendance of those members of the public who had mobility disabilities.

Ever since the move into the current offices the two parties (Los Verdes and PSOE) have warned PP Councillor David Costa, who is responsible for office allocation, that access to the current offices was inadequate. It is an example that shows the PP Governing Party's poor commitment and lack of interest for persons with disabilities and their problems of access. As always, the politics of the PP in Orihuela is limited to photographs and acts of propaganda, and not to make it easier for disabled citizens, particularly those with different needs, to participate in public life.

Dangerous Access to the Agua Marina Paseo Marítimo

The Paseo Marítimo in the Agua Marina area of Orihuela Costa provides the residents and visitors to the area with a wide promenade to stroll along with excellent views of the coast with it's bays and beaches.

That is unless the member of public is a disabled person with reduced mobility!

There is no easy and safe access to the promenade for persons who either need to use a wheelchair or other walking aids. There is a difference in the level between the roads, parking areas, and pavements leading to the promenade and the level of the promenade itself. There is approximately 50 centimetres difference in height between the two levels. This requires the presence of safe and suitable steps and ramps to permit the public to negotiate access from one level to the other. On this part of the promenade they don't exist!



Let me clarify this statement. Yes there are steps and ramps between the two levels, as can be seen in the photographs, but they are completely unsuitable. The steps are uneven and dangerous. The ramps have been built with a gradient that is far too steep to be negotiated safely by a person using a wheelchair or walking aid. They might as well not be there as a ramp that is built incorrectly is of no value at all!



There are guidelines as to the acceptable gradient that a ramp should be built to. The recommendation is a gradient of 1:12 (8%) which equates to that for each 1 metre travelled a height difference of 8 centimetres is attained. This is for ramps up to 2 metres in length (16 centimetres height difference). Where longer ramps are needed to negotiate greater heights the recommended gradient has to be reduced. It is acceptable to install ramps with a steeper gradient than the 1:12 where these are over a very short distance, such as to negotiate a pavement edge or small single step up to a height of approximately 12 centimetres.



The ramps that are there have been built with a gradient in the region of 1:3.75 (27%), a height of 48 centimetres within a distance of 1.8 metres. What this means in real terms is that, when unaided; it is dangerous for a wheelchair user to travel down the ramp because of the potential to loose control due to the speed gained; it is exceedingly difficult, if not impossible, for the wheelchair user to go up the ramp due to the physical effort needed, with the possibility of rolling back down. Having spoken to wheelchair users, who have tried to access the promenade via these ramps, they confirmed that in their experience, if they come to the area alone they have to ask members of the public to help them when using the ramps.

This is not acceptable, this is discrimination. This is taking away their dignity.

A report will be submitted to the Orihuela Town Council with a request that this unacceptable situation is rectified without delay. That the ramps and steps are rebuilt to provide safe access to the promenade by all members of the public.