Disabled people 'designed out' of Liverpool streets

Terri Ballon (left) and Dr Kay Inckle said some people can feel "designed out" of public spaces

The streets of Liverpool can still prove a potentially dangerous obstacle to wheelchair users and people with sight loss, campaigners have warned.

Failure to design infrastructure with disabled people in mind can result in many feeling "designed out" of public spaces, they said.

Terri Ballon, from the Royal National Institute for the Blind (RNIB), and Dr Kay Inckle, from Wheels For Wellbeing, highlighted specific issues with some of the busiest areas of Liverpool City Centre.

Liverpool Council said it was working with accessibility groups to improve its infrastructure and is already making changes.

Ms Ballon, who uses a cane to navigate public areas, told the BBC the newly redeveloped Strand, near Liverpool's waterfront, could be dangerous.

"There's no segregation between the cycle lane and the pedestrian area", she said.

"So I have been in situations where I have been walking in the cycle lane but I have been unaware of it."

Dr Kay Hinkle says Bold Street in Liverpool can feel "impossible to navigate" for wheelchair users

For wheelchair-user Dr Inkle, the restaurant and nightlife hotspot of Bold Street could be a daunting prospect for people with reduced mobility.

She said: "There's long stretches of pavement with no cut kerbs, there's street furniture all over the pavements, so it's really difficult to move around, it's almost impossible to navigate."

Ms Ballon added developers could make enormous differences to the lives of disabled people by listening to their experiences in the design phase of new projects.

One company already adopting that approach is AECOM Streets Manchester, which asks its staff to undertake training provided by the RNIB.

Matt Allsopp, associate director at the multi-national engineering firm, said the training included sending employees into the streets with vision-reducing goggles.

Terri Ballon demonstrates some of the difficulties facing partially sighted and blind people in Liverpool City Centre

"You get a real sense of admiration for blind and partially sighted users who are trying to use the infrastructure," he said.

"You feel quite humbled really and it leads you to want to do better and deliver really great infrastructure that works for everyone."

Mr Allsopp said simple and subtle changes, such as dropped kerbs, tactile paving and colour contrasts could make huge differences to people's lives.

Liverpool Council leader Liam Robinson said the authority was already rolling out a "comprehensive" programme to install dropped kerbs city-wide.

He also said the council had hired more enforcement officers to fine motorists for pavement parking - resulting in 50% more fines being issued - and had also installed new traffic cameras.

Addressing the Strand, he said there would be improvements during a Phase 2 in the redevelopment.

Mr Robinson said: "We welcome all feedback in terms of how we can make our city streets and roads more accessible and safe for all."