5 Ways to Expand Accessible Transport

5 Ways to Expand Accessible Transport


By Flor Paniagua, Senior Industry Specialist and Accessibility Lead, Global Transport and Maria Lopez Conde, Associate Operations Officer, Global Transport.


About 1.3 billion people—16 percent of the world’s population—live with a disability, most in low- and middle-income countries. Persons with disabilities face discrimination, health and social inequities, and higher rates of poverty, often because they are excluded from the buildings, systems, networks, services, and interactions that underpin daily life.?Equalizing such access is essential to ending poverty and improving the quality of all people’s lives.???

This year, to mark International Day of Persons with Disabilities, we explain the positive role transport companies can play in their communities, boosting inclusion through accessibility. By embedding the principles of universal design—design that they can be used by the greatest number of people—accessible transport lets people with disabilities participate more fully in the social and economic fabric of their communities. It makes a difference for other underserved populations as well, including the elderly, women, children, youth, and those with temporarily reduced mobility.???

Accessible transport projects improve the quality and safety of services, enhancing satisfaction, and leading to more—and increasingly diverse—ridership, contributing business value. Embedding universal design principles in transport gives more people greater access to jobs, school, and social services—helping to advance the UN Sustainable Development Goals. Accessible transport services and infrastructure are more comfortable, efficient, and inclusive for all.?

But where to start? How can transport operators up the accessibility quotient of their transport projects? Here are five ways.??

  1. Engage from the beginning with organizations that represent people with disabilities, women, and others to ensure that the project meets the needs of the largest number of users.?
  2. Integrate universal design into project plans. Estimates suggest that the cost of incorporating universal design dimensions at the design stage represents only 1 percent of the project’s total capital expenditure. Major retrofitting after construction is often much more expensive.?
  3. Renovate existing systems with accessibility in mind:?Operators can undertake accessibility upgrades at any stage. Some carry a significant cost. But others do not, such as training staff, adjusting signaling, or improving user-friendliness and accessibility of websites and ticketing portals—all of which can have strong impact.??
  4. Embed inclusion into environmental, social, and governance (ESG) frameworks: Doing so will increase the visibility of the efforts for investors and other stakeholders, which could help attract capital.?
  5. Link accessibility targets to sustainable finance: Accessibility-related key performance indicators in sustainability-linked finance transactions could include third-party certifications for accessibility and targets for the employment of persons with disabilities.??

The efficient movement of people—all people—and goods is a key ingredient for economic growth, allowing countries to thrive. At IFC, we support accessible transportation projects that lower costs, optimize efficiency, facilitate trade, and create jobs. Improving accessibility in transport projects makes sound economic sense. It’s also the right thing to do. IFC is here to help.?


RELATED RESOURCES

IFC’s Work in Transportation

IFC’s Work on Gender Equality & Economic Inclusion

Economic Inclusion of Persons with Disabilities at IFC

TransMiCable is more than a transport project—it’s a social inclusion project

The World Bank’s Technical Note on Accessibility?


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