A simple and cost-effective solution. Renate Franz (left) and Ilona Matthews are delighted with the uncomplicated ramp solution at the children’s fashion store Lütte Lüd.Photo: ohe
Bad Segeberg (ohe). The town of Bad Segeberg wants accessibility. The town representatives have been dealing with the issue for 14 years. Renate Franz and Ilona Matthews from the Disabled Advisory Board examined the town centre with a view to accessibility. Their conclusion: Most things are going well, but unfortunately not everything.
Renate Franz and Ilona Matthews visited the shops in the pedestrian zone. “90 percent of the shop owners and employees were nice, polite and helpful,” says Renate Franz. They spoke to many of them about the topic of accessibility. An optician told the representatives of the Disabled Advisory Board about his problems in creating barrier-free access to his shop. Only after he hired a lawyer did he get permission to redesign it, explains Ilona Matthews. Other shop owners have created very simple and inexpensive options for wheelchair access. Renate Franz and Ilona Matthews were particularly impressed by the children’s fashion store Lütte Lüd on Hamburger Strasse. Owner Viktoria Guse uses a portable ramp here that makes it possible to overcome the step in the entrance area with a stroller or wheelchair.
Bumpy pavement
The bumpy pavement in front of the Volksbank is causing problems for Ilona Matthews in her wheelchair. The small, square granite cobblestones shake her up quite a bit. She sometimes gets cramps. The smooth redstone pavement in the pedestrian zone is repeatedly interrupted by cobblestones. “The market square has turned out great,” praises Ilona Matthews.
Freezers to
difficult to open
She has problems in the supermarkets. She finds wheelchair-accessible shopping carts, sufficiently wide aisles and checkout areas everywhere. But she needs help with the freezers. “The doors are too difficult to open,” says Ilona Matthews. Older customers often have problems here too. “The price labels are too small for customers with visual impairments,” says Renate Franz. Magnifying glasses on the shopping cart or larger fonts could help here.
Delicate topic: toilets
Renate Franz and Ilona Matthews found public toilets to be a particularly sensitive issue. The town of Bad Segeberg is using the Nette Toilette concept. Everyone can use the toilets in participating shops, restaurants and cafés free of charge. Anyone who knows the concept knows who is taking part. And anyone who wants to use the toilet during opening hours will have no problems. Renate Franz and Ilona Matthews were given a helpful and friendly welcome in the bars and restaurants. But the concept and the participating businesses are still hardly known among locals and tourists.
The representatives of the Disabled Advisory Board therefore want a public barrier-free toilet. At the new Plus stop at the central bus station, Renate Franz and Ilona Matthews found themselves in front of a locked toilet door. In future, the key will be issued at the kiosk. “Today, there are more innovative access options, for example using an EC card,” says Renate Franz. She believes that linking toilet access to shop opening times is wrong. In their discussions with business people, Ilona Matthews and Renate Franz heard the demand that the city should use the income from the tourism tax to set up a public toilet.
