Today in France, more than 850,000 people have reduced mobility. They are an integral part of French society despite their disability. However, their life is made all the harder by the fact that they cannot move around freely in the capital. Travelling around Paris has become a real challenge because of the old buildings in the city center and the long distances between tourist attractions.
The city of Paris has admitted that public transport accessibility is lagging behind. However, it has a deadline: the 2024 Olympic Games, which will take place in the capital.
"We're spending 1.4 billion euros to make the surface network accessible by 2024. We must try to transpose this to the metro." Affirms Pierre Deniziot, deputy mayor of Boulogne-Billancourt and regional advisor in charge of disability. The region's objective is to make 60% of the public transport network accessible, compared to 38% today. In Ile-de-France, on average, 4 out of 10 users will have mobility difficulties one day or another. These future facilities could thus enable everyone to get around more easily.
Paris 2024 wants to be the first to be certified to the IOS (International Organization for Standardization) standard to guarantee universal accessibility for all types of event activities. They are now studying all solutions to facilitate equal access to online information, ticket purchasing, modes of transport, etc.
The organizing committee wants to "promote all the innovations that make the difference in the field of accessibility, in order to offer everyone a simple, fluid and comfortable Games experience".
Ile-de-France Mobilité, the transport organizing authority of the Ile-de-France region, promises many advances: 93% of buses and 13,000 accessible stops, as well as 100% of Grand Paris express stations and 95% of stations in the Paris region. All sites will be served by public transport: buses, metros, RER, tramways, light vehicles (vans, minibuses). At least one of these modes of transport will be accessible to people with reduced mobility.
A study is also requested for the accessibility of the line 6, partially aerial. The layout of the sports sites will allow "quality participation for all": placement of people in wheelchairs offering good visibility, audiodescription, etc.
Seine-Saint-Denis is also at the forefront and completely concerned by accessibility issues: 6 competition venues, the opening and closing ceremonies at the Stade de France, the Olympic Village and the Olympic swimming pool.
The overall budget for the organization of the Olympic and Paralympic Games is estimated at nearly 7 billion euros. The part concerning accessibility for people with disabilities is not yet known. As for the Paralympic Games, they have been allocated a budget of 440 million dollars.
Today, nearly 50% of Parisians travel on foot. Yet, unlike London, there are no easily identifiable signs for pedestrians. Cultural sites, points of interest, services, major directions... Few elements are signposted. In a bid to develop a "pedestrian Paris" strategy, the City of Paris launched a market in 2018 for the study of orientation signage. Awarded to Applied Wayfinding, a London-based company, this assignment will focus on the legibility and ease of understanding of wayfinding information. A prototyping and evaluation phase were planned in 2019 on two Parisian perimeters. Signage is as much a question of accessibility, communication and security.
Temporary signage in sport enables better management of flows during large-scale events with large numbers of spectators.
After London 2012, 81% of Britons felt that the event had improved the perception of people with disabilities in society. Tokyo 2020 is said to have "shaken up the laws" in Japan. Paris, in turn, intends to give itself the means to leave its mark, its "legacy".
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