The Iwate Prefecture city of Morioka’s general rule is to remove snow when over 10 centimeters of it has accumulated on streets, but it has been tightened to 5 centimeters on a trial basis on city roads around the prefectural Morioka School for the Blind.
Masako Okawara (68), a member of the House of Representatives and a member of the Constitutional Democratic Party who uses a wheelchair; as well as Eiko Kimura (56) & and Yasuhiko Funago (64), whom are in the House of Councilors and are members of Reiwa Shinsengumi, were asked by The Tokyo Shimbun about what it is like to work in the Diet with a disability.
In addition to encouraging their participation in society, more products that demonstrate disabled people’s artistry and sense of design are hitting the market, with last year’s Tokyo Paralympic Games giving these initiatives even more momentum.
Japan’s Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism has issued administrative guidance to Kyushu Railway Co. (JR Kyushu) over an inability to provide assistance to a wheelchair user in Nagasaki Prefecture when the station had no personnel present, sometimes referred to as an ‘unmanned station.’
YOKOHAMA – In July in Naka-ku, Yokohama, a hearing-impaired woman tried to ride on a ropeway by herself, but was refused use because of her disability, according to an interview with a person concerned. It was reported that the business operator has stipulated in the manual that hearing-impaired people should not use it alone.
In July in Naka-ku, Yokohama, a hearing-impaired woman tried to ride on a ropeway by herself, but was refused use because of her disability, according to an interview with a person concerned. It was reported that the business operator has stipulated in the manual that hearing-impaired people should not use it alone.
Escalators at train stations in Japan suggest that on one side it is acceptable to stand and that it is acceptable to move on the other side. In Tokyo you stand on the left, leaving the right side free for people move, whilst in Osaka, the etiquette is reversed, you stand on the right side, leaving the left side for people to walk quickly. However, such an arrangement makes it difficult for people with disabilities to use escalators, especially at train stations where people are often in a rush.
On the 24th, the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism compiled a draft barrier-free measure to enable people with disabilities to get on and off smoothly at unmanned stations. If it is not possible to assign a staff member to assist wheelchair users in advance, the main suggestion is for drivers and conductors to get off the train and assist. Specific guidelines are to be established within the year.
Japan just finished hosting the Paralympic Games, making a big show of it, and some say quite successfully given the conditions that a pandemic allows, of at least attempting to demonstrate that Japan could be a ‘barrier free society.’
However, it was reported by Jiji Press recently that the Japanese convenience store chain ‘Family Mart’ plans to open approximately 1,000 outlets with unmanned checkout counters by the end of the 2024 fiscal year.
Despite the nationwide introduction of over 20,000 universal design taxis and the government’s goal of promoting an inclusive society in the run up to the Paralympics, it appears Japan still isn’t in a place where wheelchair users can feel comfortable using the services.
Barrier Free Japan