14 July 2016
Councillors and officers from Norwich City Council will today take part in an ‘access walk’ with members of local disability groups in an attempt to highlight problems with accessibility in the city centre.
Representatives from the Norfolk and Norwich Association for the Blind (NNAB), the RNIB and the Norwich Access Group will talk the participants through some of the difficulties they face when negotiating Norwich city centre, particularly in the light of the changes currently taking place around St Stephen’s Street and Westlegate. Representatives from access groups have expressed concerns about uneven surfaces and the loss of signalled crossings.
The walk was suggested by Emily Papaleo of the RNIB, who also organised a ‘blindfold walk’ for two Green Party councillors earlier this year.
Green councillor Lesley Grahame thought the experience was so worthwhile that she proposed the walk be extended to include senior officers and members of the council’s Scrutiny committee.
Councillor Grahame said: “I’m really pleased to have got city accessibility on the Scrutiny agenda. We need to hear from the experts – those who are affected by ill-considered schemes and thoughtless barriers that stop visually-impaired people and those with reduced mobility finding their way in the city.”
