Have you ever gone for a walk in the center of Thessaloniki? If so, you will surely have noticed the volume of the clothing stores with the imposing storefronts and the coast which is always full of people. Apart from these, have you noticed the ramps or the places, especially built for people with particular needs and for moms with the baby buggies? If so, are they in good condition? If you haven’t noticed, I’m not going to judge you; as such facilities are not enough.

According to a survey I conducted in the center of Thessaloniki, I found out that there are not enough ramps for people with disabilities and if there are, very few of them are in good quality. This is how we understand that moving around the central streets of the city is a Calvary for those people.

Sidewalks compose one of the biggest problems, as either there are no ramps on them or they are damaged. As a result, people with disabilities or mothers who carry trolleys cannot move freely for their walk or jobs.

While I was in the center of Thessaloniki, I took the initiative to ask some of the people with special needs about their point of view on this issue, with the following question: “Do you believe that the municipality and the citizens contribute to your easier movement in the city?”, and the answer was that… “Initially, there are infrastructures for our easy access to the services of the Municipality of Thessaloniki, but the most times are not helpful. Because people usually ignore the signs for these special places and park their cars. Citizens do not respect the people who really need those places.”

Finally, according to interviews given by the deputy mayor of technical, environmental and cleanliness of the Municipality of Thessaloniki, a lot effort is put for the improvement of the streets, including the addition of more facilities for people in need.

We should all try our best for a better society, as people with disabilities and the mothers with the baby buggies of their children have the right of the freedom of easy and safe movement like all the other citizens... This could be based on the education that people receive through their families and school.