No abstract

In this research, users’ perception towards Universal Mobility in old core cities of India has been critically analyzed. Despite Universal Design guidelines from the United Nations and Union Government of India, old cities in India seldom have Universal Mobility, in effect endangering the lifestyle of senior citizens and differently-abled people. The core of Kolkata Municipal Corporation in Kolkata, India, has been considered a case example for this research. This research has considered three types of datasets for analysis. First, the authors interviewed 310 respondents from the Indian design fraternity, with the objective of understanding their opinions on the concept of Universal Design. In the next investigative study of 125 respondents from different wards of Kolkata Municipal Corporation, the purpose was to comprehend people’s perception regarding walkability and mobility in an old Indian city. In the last visual survey of a stretch in Central Kolkata, the focus was on identifying hindrances in Universal Mobility in an old city core of Indian origin. Significant dissatisfaction was found regarding walkability amongst all user groups, which is linked to poor infrastructural conditions. Furthermore, accessing public transportation is difficult due to improper waiting facilities. However, the design fraternity in India suggests the need of separate accessibility guidelines for old and new cities in India. The design fraternity also recommends a customized rating system for accessing Universal Design. The result of this study indicates a need of recognizing the difficulty in imparting Universal Mobility in old core cities in India. This information can be used for preparing an access audit checklist through Architectural Planning, which is the first step in proposing a framework for Universal Mobility in old core cities in India.

In this research, expert opinions on universal mobility in the footpaths of urban India have been critically appraised. Universal mobility (as a component of universal design) is still a largely ignored urban parameter in India despite an increase of 732.20% in the specially-abled and 105.25% in the elderly between 1911 and 2011. A total of 257 experts from the field of architecture and planning hailing from 66 cities in India were interviewed for this research. It was found that despite nationally implemented universal design guidelines, footpaths in 42.8% of the cities do not have universal mobility. In total, 74.7% of the respondents identify the dimension of the footpath as the most important factor for implementing universal mobility. The results of this study indicate the importance of universal design in improving the quality of life in Indian cities, and how urban local bodies can play a significant role in the process by using Public Private Partnership (hereafter, PPP) models and a new accessibility audit checklist.

In this research, the role of cognition in Universal Mobility at the pedestrian-level has been investigated. A stretch of approximately 850 m in the core of Kolkata Municipal Corporation (in India) has been delineated as the case area for this research. The 02 data sets considered for this research are: 1) Physical data: Pedestrian Count and Vehicular Traffic Volume, and 2) Cognitive data: Light Intensity, Noise, and Thermal Comfort. The authors collected the data from the case area in the years 2020 and 2021. This paper initially involves determining the pedestrian “Level of Service” (LOS) based on the pedestrian count. Furthermore, the authors co-relate (Pearson’s Correlation with a 95% confidence interval) the LOS data with the light intensity, sound intensity, and temperature data; to establish a relationship between them. The result of this research indicates that there is a gap in realizing the potential of walkability in the case area. The authors conclude that the improvement of cognition in pedestrian-level Universal Mobility can lead to a better physical environment for the specially-abled and elderly.

Old Indian cities are often less accessible due to temporal restrictions and ever‐rising pedestrian volume. In this research, the accessibility of the footpath‐level walkability condition of old core cities has been assessed through Architectural Planning Research, considering 32 footpath stretches in Central Kolkata, India, as a case. The research has considered 3 data sets, (a) 257 experts' opinions about universal mobility, (b) 18 variables for assessing accessibility conditions, and (c) peak hour pedestrian volume. IBM® SPSS® Statistics 26.0 version has been used to validate the findings of the research. It was found that mixed‐use buildings demarcate the edge of the footpaths in old cities. 50.6% of Indian experts have prioritized the “dimension of the footpath” while assessing universal mobility for pedestrians in the old cities of India. The average accessibility percentage for the entire surveyed stretch is negative which highlights the poor accessibility of the stretch. Pearson's correlation between footpath width and infrastructure score of 0.535 signifies the width of a footpath plays a significant role in determining the level of footpath infrastructure. Thus, the findings of this research can be used while preparing accessibility development plans for the study area and other areas of a similar genre. In this research, the accessibility of the footpath‐level walkability condition of old core cities has been assessed through Architectural Planning Research, considering Central Kolkata, India, as a case. The findings of this research prove the relationship between footpath width and the footpath infrastructure.