Urban Issue: How wheelchair accessibility can benefit us all

Bill McKay looks at how designing public spaces with wheelchair accessibility at the forefront can benefit everyone, and not just those with obvious disabilities. The term 'universal design' conveys the idea that features such as ramps, wider doorways and so on, can cater to the very young and the old, pregnant people, the sick, the physically impaired and even fit and healthy people who may be carrying groceries or other burdens. Bill examines how much of this concept is written into the New Zealand Building Code, and where the gaps are. Bill McKay is a Senior Lecturer in the School of Architecture and Planning at the University of Auckland.