I believe that “Universal Designs” are very important for everyone to lead a happy life. Thanks to the designs, our society will be much more comfortable to live. Especially in Japan, there are a lot of good designs for people with physical disabilities.
First, when you get on a train, you will see a lot of yellow blocks. They were invented for people with impaired visions. In a railway station, every block has extream uneveness. For people without any physical disabilities, they are sometimes obstruction. However, if there were no blocks, visually impaired people couldn’t get on trains safely. They are aware of approaching dangers by using these blocks.
Next, for wheelchair users, steep stairs are not convenient. They are very dangerous. Therefore, in Japan, there are gentre slopes next to stairs. Thanks to slopes, they can go up by themselves.
Of course, slope is not only for wheelchair users but also for elderly people. In general, human grows frail under the weight of years, so almost all of elderly people often have a hard time going up and down stairs. They will have really bad pain in their knees. We can say that gentle slope is much more comfortable than steep staires for the elderly.
By the way, have you ever seen a big mirror in an elevator? I think most Japanese have seen it, but only a few people might know the reason why there is such a mirror. Actually, it is not necessary for people without any physical disabilities, but essential for wheelchair users. When you are in a wheelchair, it is very difficult for you to turn around and look back. For that reason, you need to back away without looking back when you get off an elevator . However, thanks to a mirror, they can see their back and get off safely.
In conclusion, we should create more and more good designs and make our society more comfortable for everyone, including people with physical disabilities. Certainly, Japan has a lot of good designs, but I don’t think it is enough. Even if you don’t have any physical disabilities, you should always think about people having some troubles.