Older people and visitors stand to benefit just as much as those with disabilities if proper accessibility infrastructure is put in place to make Westport town fully accessible for all.
This was the message delivered to Westport Belmullet MD at their recent June meeting, following the presentation of a Westport Accessibility Audit by Occupational Therapist, Joss Douthwaite.
The Westport accessibility audit ‘to identify the barriers and explore practical ways of dealing with them’ was commissioned by Westport Chamber and SICAP through North West leader and completed at the end of November 2021.
Mr Douthwaite stated: “Ease of access is pivotal to the wellbeing of a community and this audit is about looking at how might Westport offer an accessible town for all to visit.”
In his assessment of whether Westport’s environment ‘supported or hindered people with a disability in town’, he said he conducted the surveys through ‘the lived experience of individuals who need to participate in town life, to socialise, shop or bank’. He also said he spoke to a number of visitors on their experience - which, on the whole, was very positive, and who told him, ‘this is better than where we come from’.
He also made comparisons against European guidelines and good practices on accessibility, in terms of people getting to and from Westport, whether by bus or train and also in regard to designated car parking; access to designated carparks; footpaths and pavements and crossings, accessibility of public toilets, availability of online information about Westport re accessibility and he also looked at routes such as from the Quay out to Knockranny and out the Ballinrobe Road to the Railway bridge.
He said: “80% of people with a disability will research before they go somewhere to make sure they can access services, toilets, parking etc. If that information is not available they will go somewhere else. Having good access around town would be fantastic for all, so we want you to think about universal access for all.”
Findings on Westport
His findings on Westport included: Poor travel links to and from town including no wheelchair accessible bus stop (Mill Street ); no wheelchair\limited pedestrian access from town to the railway station; no wheelchair set-down or pick-up points in the town hub or high amenity areas; poorly designed and fragmented streetscapes; narrow inaccessible footways; poor surfaces; proliferation of street furniture; retail clutter and signposts; locked access to road crossings and non-flush dropped kerbs; only one fully wheelchair accessible public toilet in Westport (Town Hall ); no readably available information online regarding disabled friendly facilities if, for example, you google ‘accessible toilets’; also, blocked, uncontrolled pedestrian crossings and badly designed controlled pedestrian crossings; unguarded sides up to the Mill Street public toilet; poorly designed designated parking bays; inaccessible ramps eg on to Greenway."
Recommendations
His recommendations included: Set up a multi-agency and lived experience accessibility group to develop an access plan for Westport; improve connectedness of Westport by joining up key routes in and around town; improve accessibility to residents and visitors and accessibility awareness training for key people involved in development and maintenance of Westport's public realm areas ie planners, engineers and contractors, business owners and hospitality'.
In conclusion, Mr Douthwaite said, he was looking toward to 'the wellbeing dividend to my retirement' and for that: "I want an accessible environment, I want to participate fully; accessibility tourism is dubbed the 'purple pound' in the UK, it is a phenomenal cash stream for lots of towns in the UK and Failte Ireland has looked at it in the context of Ireland."
The presentation was warmly welcomed by the MD members
Cllr Peter Flynn said: "Ultimately this will impact on us all, either directly or indirectly, as we get older. I compliment Westport chamber and particularly James O Doherty who was instrumental in pushing for this audit to be done; and Joss who did a lot of it in his own time. We are a tourist town and this does present a great opportunity for Westport accessibility to be at the forefront. More people will need to know can they get around a location easily, a young family with a single or double buggy will want to know can they get around. A lot of points Joss highlighted, we should address immediately; they would not involve a huge cost and would make a huge difference to people’s lives. We have made some nice improvements to our paths but need to take it further - and this will be a great favour not just for the people of Westport but all visitors also."
Cllr Sean Carey said everyone has a right to proper access to all areas. "We don’t know, God forbid, when an accident can happen and people are thrust into a situation."
Cllr Brendan Mulroy said people who are elderly, special needs, wheelchair users, and suffering with dementia, all need clear and safe routes around town. From a tourism perspective it would also be worthwhile to make everybody's experience of Westport better.
Cathaoirleach Cllr Christy Hyland thanked Mr Douthwaite for the worthy presentation saying it was obvious he put a lot of work into the study and that anyone walking around town could see the issues.
Padraig Walsh, Head of the MD, said the 180 page audit report would be 'an ongoing reference source for the council' in terms of design and also when maintenance or investment money or NTA active travel money became available'.
