By Ana Marcela Ardila Pinto and Elaine Meire Vilela
When a city allows us to walk with autonomy as we age, it becomes more fair, democratic, and safe for all people.
In recent years, observing the aging of our parents has also changed the way we look at cities. Seeing their slower steps, the care to avoid falls, and the difficulty in performing previously mundane tasks on foot led us to better understand the city's role in people's autonomy.
Some of these difficulties stem from aging itself, but another part lies in the conditions of the place where they live: uneven sidewalks, unsafe crossings, traffic signals with insufficient time for those who can no longer walk at the expected pace, and vehicles traveling at speeds not compatible with the presence of pedestrians.
Only 18.8% reside on streets with obstacle-free sidewalks.
For those who walk slowly, have disabilities, or less balance, small obstacles can determine whether a route is feasible or not. Just when continuing to walk is important to preserve functional capacity and autonomy, the urban environment can lead older people to leave home less and depend more on cars, taxis, and companions.
This experience occurs in a country that is rapidly aging. According to the 2022 Census, Brazil had 32.1 million people aged 60 or over, equivalent to 15.8% of the population; in 2010, it was 10.8%. IBGE projections indicate that by 2070, this group could represent 37.8% of the Brazilian population.
The problem has already entered public policy.
Brazil has accumulated significant advances regarding the rights of elderly people. The 1988 Federal Constitution guarantees free urban collective transportation for those over 65, later detailed and expanded upon by the Elderly Person's Statute. The National Urban Mobility Policy recognizes universal accessibility and the priority of non-motorized modes, and the ABNT NBR 9050 sets technical accessibility parameters for built spaces.
There has also been concrete progress in infrastructure. According to IBGE, 84% of residents surveyed in the 2022 Census lived on streets with sidewalks or pavements, a significantly higher proportion than recorded in 2010.
Therefore, the problem has already been recognized by various public policy instruments. The challenge is to ensure that this recognition effectively reaches the territory, i.e., goes beyond paper and becomes a reality.
Having a sidewalk does not mean being able to walk.
Census data also highlight the gap between presence and quality. Around 16% of residents surveyed still lived on streets without sidewalks. Only 18.8% resided on streets with obstacle-free sidewalks, and 68.8% lived on streets without ramps for wheelchair users.
Although serving a public function, in many cities, sidewalks continue to be constructed fragmentarily, section by section, linked to each property.
Level changes, inclines for vehicle access, poles, trees, furniture, and commercial occupations disrupt routes that should form a continuous network. For those with strength, balance, and speed, many of these obstacles can be circumvented. For those who walk more slowly, use a cane or wheelchair, or have visual or motor limitations, they can interrupt the journey.
Road safety highlights the severity of this inequality. A study by the Ipea (Brazilian Institute of Economic Research) using data from Brazilian metropolitan regions shows that the profile of fatal victims among pedestrians is older. Factors associated with this include increased vulnerability to collisions and falls, as well as urban environment issues such as inadequate sidewalks, the absence of safe crossings, and insufficient time to cross roads.
The right to travel does not guarantee the journey.
Free public transportation is crucial for elderly people in vulnerable situations. However, someone may have the right to a free ride but struggle to reach the bus stop, cross a street, or walk the final meters to their destination. Mobility depends on the continuity between the front door, the sidewalk, the crossing, and public transport.
It is here that the limitations of poorly coordinated policies become apparent. Social policy provides benefits; mobility policy organizes transportation; urban policy regulates territory; health promotes physical activity; and municipalities manage much of the public space.
For those who walk, however, these divisions do not exist. The journey is one continuous process.
Changing the way we produce accessibility.
A society that is aging needs to move from recognizing accessibility to its concrete production. This requires greater dialogue between the Union and municipalities, as well as coordination between mobility, urban development, health, assistance, aging, and policies for people with disabilities.
If a 80-year-old can cross a street without running, if someone in a wheelchair can navigate the sidewalk without interruptions, and if a person with reduced balance can reach public transport autonomously, this city also responds better to the needs of children, pregnant women, people carrying shopping, and temporarily injured individuals.
A fair city is not only one in which we can get there faster, but one in which continuing to walk, even when we walk more slowly, should not mean losing the right to participate in urban life.
Ana Marcela Ardila Pintois a professor in the Sociology Department at the Federal University of Minas Gerais (UFMG), a researcher at the Urban Studies Center (CEURB) and the RMBH nucleus of the Metropolis Observatory.
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Elaine Meire Vilelais a professor in the Sociology Department at the Federal University of Minas Gerais (UFMG), a researcher at CEURB and a member of the CNPq research group on Urban Mobilities and Accessibility.
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Read other articles on cities and urban development in the Metropolis Observatory columnMetropolis ObservatoryIn the Brazilian Fact.
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This is an opinion piece, the authors' view may not necessarily reflect the newspaper's editorial line.