Limassol pledges to fix shortfalls in disabled access

ALL public spaces need to gradually become accessible to the disabled Limassol mayor Andreas Christou said on Friday, explaining that his municipality is setting up the right infrastructure to reach the goal to help the mobility of disabled people around all parts of town.

Christou told CNA that he and the town hall have taken into consideration the observations of the architects association’s municipal councillor Miltos Papadopoulou that access and mobility infrastructure for the disabled in Limassol is almost non-existent.

The architects and the committee for accessible tourism prepared a report released on Thursday that said that access to Limassol public buildings for the disabled is difficult, noting absence of ramps or one that don’t meet standards, lifts are rare and toilets for the disabled are inaccessible and inappropriate.

For their research, the team visited the Limassol police headquarters and traffic police, District offices, the town hall, the old hospital, the tax revenue department and the municipal garden.

Christou said that the town hall has an elevator and that even though no complaints have been made, they will adjust the ramp at the entrance of the building, as noted in the observations, and that they will also look into constructing a toilet.
“A study is needed for these projects but also a lot of money,” Christou said.

He added that the town hall is a listed building and that any interventions must be made carefully and based on relevant regulations.

All new projects in Limassol are obliged include infrastructure to facilitate the disabled, Christou said, and the municipality is willing to review any proposals and take the necessary measures within its means.

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