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Sites either face severe constraints or are within private land, says LTAAROUND 5 per cent of Singapore's bus stops remain inaccessible to wheelchair users, despite the completion more than a year ago of a programme to make streets more user-friendly.儲存倉In 2011, the Land Transport Authority completed its $60million Barrier-Free Accessibility programme, which was meant to prepare public transport facilities for an ageing, less mobile popu-lation.Work was carried out at MRT stations, bus interchanges and pedestrian walkways.Out of the 4,600 bus stops, 95 per cent were made wheelchair-friendly, by installing ramps, removing obstacles and creating wider walkways.But the rest have yet to benefit from these improvements and the LTA says this is because they face "severe site constraints or are within private land such as five-foot-ways in front of private shophouses".A spokesman said: "These bus stops will be upgraded when the shophouses undergo redevelopment."One such bus stop is located in Balestier Road, opposite Balestier Point.Freelance media consultant Francis Chowdhurie, 66, wrote to The Straits Times Forum Page relating how bus service 124 whizzed by a wheelchair user despite the bus being wheelchair-accessible."It was only later that I was informed that wheelchair users could not alight at several bus stops," he said. "We need to work harder at building an inclusive society."The H迷你倉沙田ndicaps Welfare Association said it is aware that five bus stops along that route are not wheelchair-accessible."Some of these stops are located along a row of shophouses and the passageway is very narrow," said a spokesman."The step from the kerb to the passageway is also relatively high, leaving a person in a wheelchair insufficient space to manoeuvre, posing a safety hazard during boarding or alighting."Despite vast improvements, people with disabilities still face difficulties and have to take detours for inaccessible routes, said Mr Abhimanyau Pal,executive director of the Society for the Physically Disabled.By 2020, all public buses are expected to be wheelchair-friendly, while disabled-friendly routes are listed on bus operators' websites.Wheelchair user and graphic designer Nicholas Tan, 45, said: "Singapore just signed the United Nations agreement so I believe things will improve. We've got all these buses coming up, so it's natural that the bus stops also follow."Last month, Singapore ratified the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, which aims to protect their welfare inareas such as education, health care, treatment in the workplace and accessibility.Dr Marissa Medjeral, director of the Disabled People's Association, said: "As much as we would like everything to be disabled-friendly, we understand that it will take time."darylc@sph.com.sg迷你倉價錢