The efforts to help the visually impaired pedestrians in the capital city by two city corporations are going to prove worthless for setting up bars on footpath aiming at obstructing motorcyclists. The corporations began installing tactile tiles on footpaths in 2017 to facilitate the movement of the physically challenged. The tiles have a distinctive surface pattern of truncated domes, cones or bars detectable by long cane or foot, which alert the visually impaired of approaching streets and hazards ahead. But without realizing the objectives, Dhaka Metropolitan Police last year installed vertical iron and concrete short poles on several footpaths to prevent illegal parking and motorcyclists from using the footpaths that eventually ruin a good effort. After criticism, the DMP has so far instructed to remove the poles from the centre of footpaths.
Most of the footpaths in the city remain occupied by hawkers. Motorcyclists often use the pavement for avoiding traffic jam that made walking on footpaths tiresome and risky. There is another view that the city corporations did not maintain the proper orientation of the tiles while installing them. These tiles do not give any specific direction to the visually impaired people. Moreover, at places, the level of footpaths is raised, creating an obstacle to getting on it with a wheelchair. In fact, a good initiative has been marred by negligence and a lack of coordination among the departments concerned.
A recent study revealed that only 18 per cent of the existing footpaths are suitable for walking while the rest remains unusable due to car parking, hawkers, vendors, occupation by construction materials, and due to dilapidated conditions. The prime duties of the city corporations are to ease dwellers life and make their movement hassle free. A comprehensive work plan is a must to clear the walkways. We hope the city footpaths should be walkers’ friendly and there should not be any shop or hawker.
Most of the footpaths in the city remain occupied by hawkers. Motorcyclists often use the pavement for avoiding traffic jam that made walking on footpaths tiresome and risky. There is another view that the city corporations did not maintain the proper orientation of the tiles while installing them. These tiles do not give any specific direction to the visually impaired people. Moreover, at places, the level of footpaths is raised, creating an obstacle to getting on it with a wheelchair. In fact, a good initiative has been marred by negligence and a lack of coordination among the departments concerned.
A recent study revealed that only 18 per cent of the existing footpaths are suitable for walking while the rest remains unusable due to car parking, hawkers, vendors, occupation by construction materials, and due to dilapidated conditions. The prime duties of the city corporations are to ease dwellers life and make their movement hassle free. A comprehensive work plan is a must to clear the walkways. We hope the city footpaths should be walkers’ friendly and there should not be any shop or hawker.
