PERSONS with disabilities (PWD) in Cebu City may soon have easier access to recreational areas and other public places.
The City Council has passed an ordinance that adopts barrier-free designs and standards to promote tourism.
Hotels, resorts, inns, apartments, pension houses, bars, restaurants, malls, sports and recreational centers, spas, museums, clinics and hospitals are required to introduce barrier-free features and amenities and services into their building designs.
Republic Act 7277, or the act providing for the rehabilitation, self-development, and self-reliance of disabled persons, states that it is the responsibility of the state to ensure a barrier-free environment for PWDs.
In their ordinance, Councilors Alvin Dizon, Margarita Osmeña, James Cuenco and Lea Japson said PWDs, short people and the elderly can also contribute to the growth of the city’s tourism industry.
“PWDs in the Philippines have yet to feel any significant impact on the accessibility, safety and convenience of our built environment, public transport and other infrastructure,” the ordinance reads.
Barrier-free tourism for the PWD sector, the ordinance said, may be achieved by enforcing universal standards for the design of tourism sites.
Any existing features and structures that limit the mobility of PWDs must also be removed, the ordinance said.
Lodging places, hotels and similar establishments with less than 50 bedrooms are required to have at least one bedroom designed and designated for PWDs.
Doors, tables
The room should have features like a lever-type door handles, dual-height peepholes, with the lower peephole at 39 inches from the floor, light switches at a maximum of 47 inches from the floor, electrical outlets just above tables/desks at a minimum of 18 inches from the floor, bed height at a maximum of 20 inches, easy-to-open, preferably easy-sliding closet doors and dual-height hanger racks, with the lower hanger rack at 55 inches from the floor.
Other structures like the parking areas, toilets, lavatories, showers, swimming pools, elevators, ramps and emergency exits should be PWD-friendly, too.
The ordinance gives existing establishments three years to comply with the requirements.