Shared scooters and scooters are the biggest obstacle on the street for people with a visual impairment | Interior

The Brailleliga already conducted a similar survey in 2013 and the non-profit association can now compare the results with those of the new survey. Mobility has changed in ten years, for example with the emergence of shared scooters and scooters and electric vehicles. People with a visual impairment also notice this.

More than 90 percent of those surveyed (84 percent in 2013) say they sometimes experience nuisance on public roads. The most problematic obstacles are scooters and scooters. The frustrations about this are greatest in Brussels. In addition, the poor condition of the road surface, billboards and garbage bags and litter also disrupt smooth movement on public roads. The Brailleliga advocates better regulation of shared scooters, bicycles and scooters.

Electrically powered vehicles can also cause nuisance. Almost 80 percent are often or sometimes hindered by electric bicycles, 67 percent by electric scooters and 65 percent by electric buses, cars and taxis. One of the recommendations made by the Braille League is to make those electric vehicles more audible, as they pose “a real danger” to visually impaired passengers.

It still appears that a lot has been achieved at the political level and public transport in ten years’ time, but that some problems are still current. For example, more aids must be added to the street, such as studded tiles, ratchets, information signs in Braille, push buttons that vibrate and make noise to drown out the noise of the traffic, and better-lit sidewalks.

As in 2013, public transport remains the most important means of transport for blind or partially sighted people. More than 73 percent of the respondents took public transport in 2022. Just over half think it meets their needs, although there are big differences between the different regions and provinces. Brussels scores best with its inhabitants. Satisfaction is also above average in the provinces of Namur, Antwerp and Flemish Brabant. In the province of Luxembourg, only 11 percent are satisfied.

In addition to public transport, most respondents also use the car thanks to volunteers or relatives who drive them. Other transport options are the social taxi, a regular taxi and the STIB taxi bus.

People with a visual impairment can apply for a free parking card, but the survey reveals a problem that did not exist ten years ago: the Scancar. This is a camera-equipped car that drives through the streets and scans number plates of parked vehicles to check whether drivers have paid their parking fee or have a resident card. However, the cameras do not record parking tickets for people with disabilities. They will then be wrongly fined, which they must contest.

The Brailleliga survey was conducted by AQ Rate among 664 people with a visual impairment, 14.2 percent of whom are blind. The survey was conducted both online and by telephone.

The Week of the Braille League starts on Monday 20 March and lasts two weeks as usual. With a campaign, the non-profit organization wants to emphasize the importance of smooth mobility for people with a visual impairment. “It is one of the most important pillars, but also one of the biggest bottlenecks on the way to independence, so that blind or partially sighted people can fully participate in society,” it sounds.

In the coming weeks, the Braille League will visit, among others, the Federal Minister for Persons with Disabilities Karine Lalieux, the Flemish Minister of Mobility Lydia Peeters and her federal colleague Georges Gilkinet to hand over the results of the survey.