00:00With Expo 2020 only four years away, there have been many initiatives implemented to
00:11make sure Dubai is more access friendly for people with disabilities. We've come to meet
00:16a couple of people who rely on these changes to see how it's impacted their lives.
00:21When I was 18 years old I had to sit on a wheelchair for the first time. I felt embarrassed
00:32about it but I had no choice because I was unable to walk so I had to sit on a wheelchair.
00:40I am from Bombay, India and I have cerebral palsy which is why I am on a wheelchair.
00:54How do you find getting around Dubai in a wheelchair? Is it easy?
00:59In the new parts I find everything accessible but in some of the older buildings there are
01:08no ramps for me to enter. Sometimes there are no proper ramps and there are not good
01:21pavements so that makes it difficult to go in and out of places. I noticed most of the
01:31malls and all the new places are accessible for me. They have parking, toilets, everything
01:43so Dubai is improving.
01:48Just now in the business bay area they have come up with good ramps but one or two places
01:54in this new development have made one or two mistakes. Especially the crossing area is
02:01very dangerous for her. The place is very narrow, the car coming and going. I have a
02:08ramp in the car. There is no ramp in Dubai so I use that ramp which I got from the USA.
02:14I sent an email to RTA that these are some of the places where I go and I don't have
02:24the pedestrian crossings. So I wrote an email to RTA about this and I got a reply after
02:39some time that they said they are working on it and they will let me know in a few months.
02:44Yes we are aware about this issue and we have a clear strategy to implement a comprehensive
02:49plan to make our city disabled friendly and that is to reach our vision which is safe
02:57and smooth transport for all. We believe that we have done a lot of effort in public
03:04transportation in general and also we believe that a lot of work should be done to create
03:12the city walkable for all, especially for disabled people. Our focus in the last years
03:23was on transportation to encourage people to use public transportation. For the next
03:27stage we are focusing now to enhance the walkability in the city which will ease the
03:35movement for the disabled people. RTA is there, they are listening to the people who need
03:41it and I am quite grateful to RTA that they made it because after me there could be some
03:52other people who would be using it. It's a good job that they have done so that she is
03:56comfortable, she is moving around and when we have seen all this development coming up
04:00that's why we thought of getting her this wheelchair so that she can move on independently
04:05and then I don't have any problem, she is free, I am free. Dubai authorities have been
04:09working at full speed to make sure the city is 100% access friendly for people with disabilities
04:14and the changes they have implemented so far are making a real impact in the lives of those
04:19people who desperately need those facilities. Salve Grand Paia, Golf News.
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