A gentle ramp, a solid handrail, seemingly inconspicuous small details, but the level and temperature of urban services can best be reflected. The construction of barrier-free environment is a hard task and hard target for Beijing to prepare for the Winter Olympic games and the Winter Paralympic Games. In the past 3 years, Beijing's barrier-free transformation and improvement in the details and humanized services to work hard, the Winter Olympic venues pay attention to the full streamline barrier-free, urban roads eliminate breakpoints and height differences, the disabled, the elderly can travel independently, the living environment is more livable and intimate, the "city of the two Olympics" Beijing is about to usher in a "temperature, barrier-free" Winter Paralympic event.
Change core
From "it works" to "It's comfortable and convenient to use"
"The Beijing Winter Paralympic Games involve a total of 5 competition venues in 3 competition areas, including 3 non-competition venues such as the Winter Olympic Village, the National Stadium and the Yanqing Awards Plaza." Peng Sitian, director of the Accessibility Coordination Department of the Paralympic Games Department of the Beijing Winter Olympics Organizing Committee, introduced that both inside and outside the venue need to create a safe, smooth and warm barrier-free environment to meet the needs of athletes, spectators and other customer groups.
The Beijing 2008 Olympic Games left a valuable Olympic legacy for the city and greatly promoted the improvement of the city's barrier-free environment. Compared with 2008, the construction of barrier-free environments has also highlighted the changes.
"In the past, barrier-free facilities were available and could be used, but now they must not only be able to use, but also work, be easy to use, and be comfortable and convenient to use." For example, Peng Sitian said that the barrier-free guide for the Winter Olympics requires that the public toilet with barrier-free toilets should provide a traffic width of no less than 80 centimeters, "In the past, the Summer Olympics did not have such a detailed specification, and this actual transformation raised the width to 85 centimeters, and even widened the athletes' streamline to more than 1 meter." ”
Competition venues
The dressing room was remodeled and well equipped
In Beijing, the National Aquatics Center ("Ice Cube") and the National Gymnasium ("Ice Sail") will host wheelchair curling and Paralympic ice hockey events respectively. During the competition, athletes enter through Gate 4 of the North Plaza of the Ice Cube, which has a zigzag-shaped, 80-meter-long barrier-free passage leading to the ice rink, which can accommodate two wheelchairs in width.
Athletes' dressing rooms also have holes. "In addition to the 10 permanent athletes' locker rooms, we have adapted 10 containerized locker rooms to flexibly fill the seats." Ice Cube barrier-free transformation staff introduced, each about 30 square meters of containers, in fact, is made of 4 small containers spliced together, in order to cooperate with the wheelchair flat in and out, the use of automatic door settings, locker room entrance wheelchair ramp slope set to 1 to 16, but also designed a double-layer handrail. Inside the changing room, toilets, sinks, shower facilities are simple and easy to use, and athletes will feel warm during the race.
At Ice Sail, all the passenger elevators have been barrier-free, there is no threshold in the venue, and people with disabilities can directly access the competition venue and the grandstand from each entrance. From the athletes' locker room to the playing field, all of them will be covered with simulated ice boards to reduce the slope of the ramp, and athletes can slide into the competition field from the locker room.
Barrier-free seats are set up in the grandstands of the venue
Barrier-free facilities are not exclusive to athletes, as a reuse of the Summer Olympic venues, the barrier-free facilities of the Ice Cube and Ice Sail venues have been upgraded with the construction and renovation, and the best position of the stands has been reserved for wheelchair users.
The Ice Cube removed some of the seats and reserved the north and south stand areas, providing wheelchair users with barrier-free seats at a rate of 1.2% of the total number of seats in the venue, and providing escort seats on a 1-to-1 ratio. Ice Sail added 36 barrier-free stands, making them look like balconies and scattered at the entrances of various venues, bringing the audience closer to the hockey venue.
The car-style cable car is wheelchair accessible
In the Yanqing Area, the National Alpine Ski Center has built a total of 18 barrier-free toilets, 19 barrier-free elevators and 11 ropeways, of which the car-type cable car can be used for wheelchairs, the car-type elevator can meet the needs of athletes with lower limb disabilities to wear skiers, and built a towway dedicated to the Winter Paralympic Games. Before the Winter Paralympic Games, temporary barrier-free toilets will be added in different areas, and temporary ramps will be set up to deal with the height difference caused by snowmaking.
Non-competition venues
The Bird's Nest completes the streamlined transformation of barrier-free operation
As the venue for the opening and closing ceremonies of the Beijing Winter Paralympic Games, the National Stadium (Bird's Nest) has completed the construction of 5 barrier-free running streamlines, and the barrier-free facilities in the venue are starting from the details and reflecting humanistic care everywhere.
"On the day of the opening ceremony, after the Winter Paralympic athletes arrive at the drop-off area in an accessible vehicle, we will temporarily build 25 sets of barrier-free ramps here to allow wheelchair athletes to 'land' smoothly." Peng Sitian said that the waiting area after athletes from all over the world get off the bus will be set up in the "attached field" only a few tens of meters away from the venue. The reporter visited and saw that the entrances and exits here are equipped with barrier-free ramps, the ramp articulation is zero height difference treatment, and the wheelchair is very stable and non-slip when crossing the slope.
Smart toilets serve Paralympic athletes
What's even more surprising is that there will also be 10 new smart barrier-free toilets here. Reach out and put your hand on the door button to gently sense, "The door is about to open automatically, please take care of children beware of pinch injuries" The Chinese and English prompts came, and then the door opened automatically. In the bathroom, the spacious swing space can fully meet the needs of wheelchair people; the right hand side is set up with a hanging hook; the waving toilet cushion cover can also be automatically replaced; the trash can on one side is also waving inductive; the athletes can wash their hands and dry their hands in one stop at the low hand washing station.
There are a total of 13 such toilets, 3 of which are in the Olympic Public Service Area, serving spectators, staff, and 10 in Beijing Awards Plaza. During the Winter Paralympic transition period, all 10 toilets will be moved to the Bird's Nest Annex to serve the athletes on the opening and closing ceremonies. Peng Sitian explained.
The Winter Paralympic Village apartment buildings are accessible
Aside from the stadium, the longest time athletes stayed was in the Winter Paralympic Village. Among them, the Beijing Winter Paralympic Village will open 9 apartment buildings that fully meet the needs of accessibility to receive athletes and accompanying officials. In order to make everyone comfortable, the Paralympic rooms are set up with complete barrier-free facilities, the indoor door adopts a sliding door with handles, switches, sockets, mirrors, window handles, etc. are also designed low, and the emergency button is located in a conspicuous place above the bedside table. In addition, during the transition from the Winter Olympics to the Paralympic Winter Games, the foot of each bed will be lowered. The floor of the barrier-free toilet is non-slip ground, and there is a toilet with safety grab bars on both sides, a wash basin with a height of 80 cm, a roll-in shower, a safety grab bar and a shower stool.
Urban area
The Hotel has accessible rooms
With the help of the preparation opportunity of the Winter Olympic and Paralympic Games, Beijing launched a special action for the construction of barrier-free environment in the city in 2019-2021.
After nearly three years of efforts, the functional core area of the capital city, the Winter Olympic and Paralympic Games and service guarantee related areas have basically achieved barrier-free. Through multiple rounds of "physical examination" of 108 Olympic-related venues and surrounding areas, 25 designated hospitals for the Winter Olympics, 60 Hotels signed for the Winter Olympic Games, and 7 Hotels signed for the Winter Paralympic Games have all completed barrier-free transformation, and 9858 points within 1 km of the Olympic-related venues have been transformed and upgraded.
Located near the Olympic Park, InterContinental Beijing Beichen is both an Olympic family hotel and a Paralympic family hotel. Prior to the Winter Olympics, the hotel completed the transformation of 20 fully accessible rooms and 9 wheelchair-friendly rooms, as well as barrier-free environments in the hotel's public areas. After the transformation, the completely barrier-free guest rooms have large space, stylish decoration and complete facilities, and have achieved "full slope", "full rounded corners" and "full low position".
"We lowered the height of the bed from 65 cm to 45 cm, which is the same as the height of the wheelchair. The coffee table and table are separated to make room for the wheelchair to turn around. According to the relevant person in charge of the hotel, the bathroom also fully meets the accessibility requirements, adding a shower stool with water leakage, a spray of visual temperature, etc., the knee space of the wash table is sufficient, and there are handrails on the countertop.
Public transportation solves the problem of connecting "points" into "lines"
In the past, many barrier-free facilities solved the problem of "having", but not yet reached the level of "good"; solved the problem of "point" but did not connect into a "line", which is especially obvious in traffic travel.
In the special action for the construction of barrier-free environment, the city issued the "Atlas of Fine Standards for the Barrier-free Transformation of Urban Roads in Beijing Municipal Management", which refines and clarifies the passage paths of blind roads and barrier-free settings of bus platforms, and supervises and guides the rectification of various barrier-free elements of urban roads. In accordance with this standard, the city piloted the completion of the treatment of two barrier-free demonstration roads on Qianmen East Avenue and East Third Ring Auxiliary Road, and invited the supervisors of the Disabled Persons' Federation to conduct on-site experience supervision. In the past three years, the city has repaired 26123 blind lanes and 6597 pedestrian crossings; transformed 35 pedestrian bridges and underground passages, and the blind lanes of the main roads in the city are basically "no breakpoints" and the edge stone ramps are basically "zero height difference".
In response to the problem of "wheelchair riding", the city has transformed 2701 bus hubs, bus platforms, subway stations, public parking lots, and 12242 buses are equipped with barrier-free guides and other facilities, accounting for 80.12% of the total number of buses in urban areas. In terms of rail transit, 59 climbing cars and 142 wheelchair lifting platforms have been updated at old line stations such as Metro Line 1 and Line 2. More people with disabilities and the elderly can travel independently.
Street stores open up the "last mile"
In fact, for many disabled friends, the place with the most activities is not far from the community. "In the process of rectification, the districts found that the barrier-free facilities in the community and street stores are exactly where the people are most concerned." The relevant person in charge of the Municipal Disabled Persons' Federation admitted frankly.
To this end, Beijing has implemented a "menu-style" transformation of old residential areas, and the installation of barrier-free facilities such as elevators has become a routine project. The city's 29,500 old residential buildings have been equipped with handrails, the unit doorways have been sloped, and 24,300 "seven small" stores on the street have been renovated, striving to solve the accessibility problem of the "last kilometer" at the doorstep.
There are about 4,000 households and more than 9,000 people in Jinsongbei community, of which the elderly account for more than 30%. "Residents are very vocal about improving barrier-free facilities and improving the community environment." Yang Bingzhang, secretary of the Jinsong Street Working Committee, introduced that in this regard, the street took the Jinsong North Community as a pilot to explore and promote the comprehensive transformation and organic renewal of the old community, and barrier-free transformation was also included.
Nowadays, supermarkets, barbershops and other entrances in the community have set up barrier-free ramps and installed non-slip handrails. The height of the seats in the small garden on the north side has been raised to 45 cm, and the ring armrests have been added, making it more convenient for the disabled and the elderly to sit up, in addition, the corners of the tables and chairs are polished and smooth, and the anti-collision wrapping has been carried out to avoid safety hazards. The Street Disabled Persons' Federation purchased electric wheelchairs and stair climbing machines for the community, helping the elderly and disabled with limited mobility to overcome stair obstacles, and cooperating with the transformation of barrier-free environments by artificially assisting soft construction.
Wangfujing Street is one of the key barrier-free business districts in Dongcheng District, and there are many small stores on this street of less than 1,000 meters. The improvement of barrier-free environment starts from the subtleties, and the stores on the south side of the street, such as Sheng Xifu, Bu Yingzhai, Wu Yutai, KFC, etc., because the space for renovation at the door is limited, it is impossible for each store to build an entrance ramp, so an integrated ramp is installed. With two ramps at the end and one tail, the public can reach nearly 10 stores, solving the barrier-free problem of a row of shops. For stores that are limited by conditions and cannot be transformed, they are mainly replaced by movable barrier-free ramps, and a love service telephone is posted with the posting, which gives everyone a sense of security.