Accessibility there is a lot more to it than meets the eye. Fact is that every day, many people - especially the disabled - are confronted with the inaccessibility of many aspects of day-to-day life. Today, people with a handicap - the hearing impaired, the visually impaired, wheelchair users - all too often still cannot make use of the package of services offered by governments or by the private sector. In many cases, services are created, developed and offered for the 'average' person. There is nothing wrong with that of course, but one has to realise that the average person of today is not the average person of 30 or 40 years ago. The baker around the corner, the library, the museum, the café, the restaurant,.. the new average person wants to use their services, wants to visit them or participate in cultural events. Today, that person who cannot climb a staircase, only reads braille or expresses himself through sign language wants to be a full member of society. There are several international treaties to support this demand, but in practice, it is often ignored.

Inaccessibility equals segregation, or to put it differently: in order to be a full member of society, the services and the buildings must offer the opportunity to do so by being accessible.

How many obstacles in Bruges prevent wheelchair users from gaining access? Do restaurants offer menus in braille? Are the hearing impaired addressed in their own (sign) language? For the Municipal Board for Persons with a Handicap(1), the main purpose of this guide was to provide a tool that lists what is accessible to and useful for persons with a handicap. The go-ahead for this guide was given when Bruges obtained the title of Cultural Capital of Europe in 2002. The accessibility guide of the City of Leipzig served as an example.

By means of correct and complete information, many disabled persons will be able to determine which buildings in Bruges are accessible to them.

Looking at the results, one has to conclude that too many buildings and services are inaccessible. Therefore, the Municipal Board for Persons with a Handicap will continue to try and make the scale tip in the other direction. Having taken the initiative for this guide, the Municipal Board for Persons with a Handicap does not consider this chapter closed. The information gathered must be updated on a regular basis and incorporated in existing guides, leaflets, programmes, etc., so that the new average person can always obtain the information he needs.

Even so, the Municipal Board for Persons with a Handicap is very happy with the result. I would like to express my thanks to all those who contributed towards the realisation of this guide and would like to pay tribute to the memory of Mr André Carpels, vice-chairman of the Municipal Board for Persons with a handicap. Although he was one of the initiators of this project, he has never been able to see the final result as he passed away on 27 September 2001.

(1) The Municipal Board for Persons with a Handicap is the official advisory body for the City of Bruges in the field of disabled policy, established in 1978. From the beginning, this advisory body has aimed at a better accessibility of the city. This has resulted in some remarkable and many less obvious improvements for the disabled. The key words of this board are enthusiasm, determination and expertise.

[back]