Walkability, Accessibility, and Mobility Justice In Cities

By Stephanie Molloy, student physiotherapist

I was recently scrolling on twitter when I came across this interesting thread posted by Ragen Chastain (@danceswithfat) (1). The last two tweets in particular really stood out to me, especially the line “building neighborhood community around movement leaves a lot of people out and further harms and marginalizes those who are already marginalized”.

Alt text: screenshot of two tweets of a twitter thread by user Ragen Chastain @danceswithfat: Building neighborhood community around movement leaves a lot of people out and further harms and marginalizes those who are already marginalized. What we've been taught is "health promotion" actually does the opposite, and we must stop making these mistakes. 5/6 We need to focus on making movement options safe and accessible, w/ the clear message that movement/fitness is not an obligation, barometer of worthiness, or entirely within our control & that nobody is obligated to participate, but everyone who wants to should be welcome 6/6

Although this thread was about fitness, this immediately made me think about the concepts of “walkable” cities and the “15-minute city”. Essentially, the idea of having necessary services and employment within walking distance, having multi-modal transport connect different areas (i.e. buses, bike lanes, etc), and most importantly, being able to leave the car at home. These concepts want to encourage greener cities, promote exercise, and increase social interaction. (2)

But, who do the designers and city planners have in mind? Who are these walkable neighborhoods being made for? These questions led me down a rabbit hole of walkability, accessibility, and ableism and “mobility justice”.

You may think that open cities/roads, increasing walkways, even widening sidewalks are inherently good ideas that are increasing accessibility - but without the forethought of including disabled people within these designs structural ableism continues to persist.

In Aimi Hamraie’s article Crip Mobility Justice: Ableism and Active Transportation Debates (3), two quotes stood out to me:

“As a disabled person … I found that my particular ways of using built environments were not anticipated by active transportation infrastructures”

“The question of what kinds of people exist and ought to be supported in public space was not approached through the frameworks of accessibility, disability justice, or mobility justice.”

Through reading more about this topic and people’s first hand experiences, I realized that what I took for granted, as a generally able-bodied individual, as great leaps toward eco-friendliness and accessibility were actually just new ways of maintaining the same structural barriers. Failure to consider disabled people (and others who benefit from adaptations) when designing spaces is violent in and of itself. Whether intentional or not, failing to consider who and how spaces will be used, and failing to center marginalized voices and recommendations is perpetuating harmful structural violence and barriers.

It is incredibly essential for our future that we de-vehicle cities and promote sustainable neighborhoods, but these actions mean nothing without centering and actually listening to disabled people. “Walkability” should not be based solely on able-bodied 20-50 year olds abilities, and a society or community that leaves any member isolated and unable to comfortably engage is wholly unacceptable.

Within this message I think it’s incredibly important to highlight that not only do future urban designs need to be accessible, but they need to be comfortably and easily enjoyed. All individuals need to feel safe, welcomed, and wanted in all environments. Accessible design should be clear and obvious to those who require it, and not hidden away.

Connection to Health Promotion and Rehabilitation

Now, how do these ideas and topics apply to me as a physiotherapist? As someone who wants to promote healthy living and activity within all my patients?

We already know about the social determinants of health, and even about disproportionate access to green spaces and fitness spaces for many individuals (see my blog post on EnviroPhysio for more more on green spaces). Now urban planning and design is added to the list of structural barriers stopping some people from accessing fitness - or just life in general.

This leads me to the concept of Mobility Justice - mainly a document put together after The Untokening: A Convening for Just Streets & Communities 2016 convention, titled Untokening 1.0 Principles of Mobility Justice (4).

Alt text: Screenshot from the PDF Untokening 1.0 Principles of Mobility Justice with text that reads:

Mobility Justice demands that we fully excavate, recognize, and reconcile the historical and current injustices experienced by communities — with impacted communities given space and resources to envision and implement planning models and political advocacy on streets and mobility that actively work to address historical and current injustices experienced by communities.

Seek to understand how oppressed communities have survived and thrived in spite of systemic neglect, & how these most vulnerable populations continue to struggle because of structural inequalities.

Based on reading this document, and my own reflections, I have come up with the following 5 actions that feel relevant to me as a health rehabilitation professional and patient advocate. I hope some of these actions inspire you to follow along, or to reflect on your own meaningful way of interacting with this topic.

1. Interrogate the physical accessibility of your own clinic/workplace

a. Is there an easy way for patients to drive to your work? Is there accessible parking? Are there sufficient bus routes and a nearby bus stop? Is the entrance clearly marked? Is it easy to walk into your building and to your clinic/area?

b. Based on what is lacking - what can you do to fill these gaps? Can you put together a donation fund for patient taxi services? Can you ask the building manager for better signage/repairs/ramp installation?

2. Discuss neighborhood accessibility with patients, especially in regards to fitness

a. Have you ever told a patient to start walking everyday to increase their fitness? How many times has this exercise prescription included a conversation about their neighborhood, their access to safe sidewalks and green spaces, and their feelings of safety?

b. Incorporate conversations about patient comfort and accessibility into your prescriptions - especially if they involve the outdoors or needed to commute to a facility

c. Come up with strategies together with the patient to overcome certain barriers.

3. Read the Principles of Mobility Justice

4. Apply mobility justice at a local level, to your own community

a. Attend town hall and community meetings, especially when they pertain to the future and to urban planning

b. Uplift marginalized voices, and advocate when they are not present. Always ensure you are not drowning anyone out if it is not your place

c. Interrogate your neighborhood through a mobility justice lens. Are there harmful practices in place? Look into who you should contact for raising awareness and promoting positive change.

5. Take care of yourself, and only engage if you have the capacity

a. As with any justice work you must ensure that you take care of yourself first. Advocacy and change promotion is important, but not at your personal detriment. Within justice spheres there are a wide range of topics and areas of injustice that need work to be done - pick the most meaningful to you and don’t run yourself down.

For me as a health rehabilitation professional, I feel it is part of my professional obligation to holistic patient care to advocate against injustices within the world. A patient does not exist in a vacuum, and until environmental, structural, and societal violences are addressed and overcome achieving true health and wellbeing can be incredibly difficult. I want to exist in a world where patient’s ailments are not caused by the inhospitable world around them, and are destined to reoccur without intense societal change. For me, advocacy is as much a part of my job as evaluation and treatment. I want my patients to be able to thrive and heal holistically and entirely.

References:

1. Chastain, Ragen (@danceswithfat).

“I know that fitness pros are well-meaning when they say "everyone should move" or movement will "make everyone healthier" or "we should build community in our neighborhoods around movement" but it's not true, it's harmful, and we need to stop saying these things. a thread 1 / 6”. May 16, 2022. 8:37pm. Tweet.

2. Kurdi, Thea & Abdullah, Anika. (2021) Disability justice in the city. Plan Canada. Retrieved from: http://www.designable.ca/resources/PlanCanada_Spring2021_DesignABLE_Environments.pdf

3. Hamraie, Aimi. (2021). Crip Mobility Justice: Ableism and Active Transportation Debates. International Journal of Urban and Regional Research. Retrieved from: https://www.ijurr.org/spotlight-on/disabling-city/crip-mobility-justice/

4. Untokening 1.0 Principles of Mobility Justice. Retrieved from: https://static1.squarespace.com/static/579398799f7456b10f43afb0/t/5a08797553450af07cb310dd/1510504821822/Untokening+1.0+web.pdf

5. Photo by Rosivan Morais : https://www.pexels.com/photo/moving-cars-and-bikes-on-the-road-5965855/