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Wheelchair activist begins tour to study accessibility

A wheelchair rider yesterday started his two-week tour around the country to inspect how user-friendly the island is for disabled people, and hopes to gather information to provide references to local governments so improvements can be made.

Chen Chuan-hung (陳全鴻), before embarking on his tour, said yesterday that the tour is aimed at improving wheelchair accessibility in Taiwan not only for the physically disabled but for all pedestrians who need convenient and comfortable walking space, including the elderly, the pregnant and children.

Chen, a chicken farmer and a winner of an excellent farmer award in Taipei City, said he confronted many obstacles such as uneven road surfaces, scooters parked in the wrong places and buildings with safety violations while traveling in Taiwan’s street arcades or verandas, some of which are located next to sidewalks.

Chen usually sells his farm produce in arcades.

Chen added that only roads more than 20m wide have sidewalks, and most of the time, disabled people and other pedestrians have to use street arcades on smaller roads.

The unfriendly walking space of Taiwan’s sidewalks and arcades usually forces him to ride his wheelchair on roads among vehicles.

On the tour, Chen said he and several volunteers would inspect certain streets and roads, as well as places where people usually visit, including public transportation stations, hospitals, and shopping malls in each city and county on their tour to acquire a better understanding of the country’s level of street and sidewalk accessibility for the disabled.

Chen waited until his three kids were out of school for the summer before launching the tour so they could help him take care of his chicken farm, he said.

To ensure an uninterrupted schedule, Chen said he prepared a solar battery for his electric wheelchair, and a remodeled scooter to use for longer trips on the road.

The tour will take Chen to 15 cities and counties.
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