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Making Berlin accessible to all, Berlin, Germany
Making Berlin accessible to all, Berlin, Germany - © Berlin Senate Department for Urban Development and the Environment, Accessible Public Buildings / Berlin - Design for all (cover)

Making Berlin accessible to all

Status
ongoing
50%
City

Berlin

Main actors

City Government, other

Project area

Whole City/Administrative Region

Duration

Ongoing since 2007

Berlin has the ambition to become a world-class example of a ‘barrier-free city’. It has compiled a series of planning guidebooks and developed a tactile scale model of the city for visitors and citizens alike.

The two manuals, ‘Berlin Design for All’, provide experts and planners with a set of requirements and planning principles to help create a barrier-free city. One manual is dedicated to publicly-accessible buildings and the other to publicly-accessible free spaces, and both are intended to complement existing laws, regulations and technical requirements. It is now mandatory to use the manuals for the design and construction of all state buildings in Berlin. The team developing the manuals worked closely with a number of affected individuals to ensure they really do provide guidelines which respond to the needs of the visually impaired and less able.

While the manuals are aimed at professionals – architects and urban planners – an exhibition opened to raise awareness amongst the public of the importance of a barrier-free city. It consists of a scale plan of the city constructed in a specially-developed sand and plastic material which is both tactile and hygienic. Residents and visitors alike can explore the city on a tactile model using their senses, with important landmarks picked out in 1:200 scale. To provide a global overview, a relief map in 1:10,000 scale including Berlin's district borders, open areas, water areas and water courses has been added.

For further information about the case study, click here.

Sustainable Development Goals

Build resilient infrastructure, promote inclusive and sustainable industrialization and foster innovationReduce inequality within and among countriesMake cities and human settlements inclusive, safe, resilient and sustainablePromote peaceful and inclusive societies for sustainable development, provide access to justice for all and build effective, accountable and inclusive institutions at all levels

Access City Award

This project was awarded the 'Access City Award' in 2013.

Learn more
City
Berlin, Germany
Size and population development
In 2019, the municipality of Berlin had a population of 3,669,491 inhabitants, making it the most populous city in the European Union (EU). The larger metropolitan area has about 5 million inhabitants.
Population composition
According to estimations, about one third of Berlin’s population was foreign born or has a migratory background. These inhabitants originate from other parts of the EU—such as Poland, Italy or Bulgaria—as well as from countries outside of the EU, such as Syria, Vietnam or the United States of America. The largest non-native population comes from Turkey: In 2019, more than 107,000 Turkish nationals were registered as inhabitants of Berlin.
Main functions
Berlin is the capital and largest city of Germany. As a city-state it is also one of the country’s 16 Länder, as the federal states are called in Germany. Situated approximately 112 miles (180 km) south of the Baltic Sea, the city lies in the wide glacial valley of the Spree River, which runs through Berlin’s centre. The city extends over an area of 891.7 square kilometres and stands at an average altitude of 34 meters above sea level. After the reunification of Germany and East and West Berlin in 1990, the unified Berlin was re-established as the country’s capital (replacing Bonn, the former capital of West Germany). In 1999, large parts of the Federal Government and the German Bundestag finally moved back to Berlin. Berlin is a city of great historical significance, which becomes evident considering the amount of historical landmarks that visualize the city’s history. Some of the most important landmarks include the Brandenburg Gate (built in 1793), the Reichstag Building (which dates to 1884), remnants of the Berlin Wall (taken down on the 9th of November 1989) or the Holocaust memorial (inaugurated in 2003). Berlin is also a famous cultural hub, known for its world-class museums, theatres, operas and concert halls as well as its vibrant club scene and street art. Finally, the Brain City Berlin is a leading location for science and research. It is home to a number of prestigious universities such as the Freie Universität Berlin, the Humboldt Universität zu Berlin and the Technische Universität Berlin, with more than 35,000 students each as well as renowned research institutions and think tanks.
Main industries / business
As the fourth largest economy of the world, Germany has a wide array of prestigious industries. Berlin is home to a diverse mix of economic activities: state-owned enterprises, creative industries, automotive manufacturers, (digital) media corporations, high-tech and telecommunication companies as well as multiple digital pioneers that flourish in the city’s vibrant start-up scene. Tourism is constantly growing and brings about 14 million visitors (2019) to the city every year.
Sources for city budget
Berlin draws its budget for public expenditure largely from taxes, federal transfers, fees, fines and operating revenues. It is spent not only to provide high quality public services, but also to boost the city’s private sector, civil society engagement and cultural life.
Political structure
The city-state Berlin is governed by the Berlin Senate, which is comprised of 10 senators, and the Governing Mayor. As the capital of Germany, Berlin hosts the Bundesregierung (federal government), the Bundestag (federal parliament) and the Bundesrat (the parliamentary chamber of the 16 Länder). Each of the 16 Länder has a representation in Berlin. On many political issues, the Länder have co-legislative powers vis-à-vis the Federal government. Moreover, Berlin hosts embassies from more than 120 countries from around the world.
Administrative structure
Berlin is administrated by the Senate and its 12 districts or boroughs (Bezirke). The Senate is the city’s central administration, in charge of city planning, public policy, and the regulation of public and private spheres. The district administrations have some decentralized public functions, with reasonable differences between the various localities.
Website
http://www.berlin.de

Since its reunification in 1990, Berlin is pursuing a policy of accessibility. Due to population ageing, the proportion of people with disabilities is expected to rise in Germany and the need to achieve more accessibility in the city of Berlin is becoming ever more pressing. The first guide 'Barrier-Free Planning and Construction in Berlin - Public Buildings' was published in 2007 by the Berlin Senate Department for Urban Development and the Environment. The second edition of this planning guide for barrier-free construction, the 'Design for all' guides, were released in November 2011 and March 2013 to include international codes and legal regulations.

The new guides reprensent a paradigm shift from a ‘deficit approach’ to a ‘diversity approach’. Their objective is to mainstream the 'Design for all approach' in every stage of the planning and construction process to achieve barrier-free use of public and publicly funded buildings and grounds in Berlin. Barrier-free planning and construction is defined in the Berlin-Design for all guides as the objective of "designing public spaces and buildings that are safe and enjoyable for everyone, including people who have disabilities". Fulfilling this purpose is a complex task that requires more than a legal framework. Both guides represent a comprehensive approach to barrier-free construction and provide concrete guidelines to the planning process. By means of those guides, Berlin intends to make a substantial contribution to the implementation of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, or the UN Disability Convention.

In turn, the purpose of the exhibition - a tactil scale model of the city - is to inable citizens to understand the urban environment and to familiarise themselves with the city’s structures and layout under the principle of ‘Design for all’.

The 'Barrier-Free Construction' coordinating office at the Berlin Senate Department for Urban Developmentand Environment offers its expertise in barrier-free planning and construction to professionals. Through its working group ‘Barrier-Free Construction and Transportation’ which is active since 2001, Berlin has built a network of experts, advisory organisations and representatives of the people affected who collaborate with the coordinatong office to provide advice and assistance to many new construction projects. In addition to the Design for all guides, the Berlin Senate Department for Urban Development and the Environment published in 2015 the 'Barrier-Free Concept' Instructions - Accessible Public Buildings. The assistance provided in this manual is in line with the planning stages of a public construction project, defining the "WHO does WHAT and WHEN" in a barrier-free planning process.

The 3-D city model is on permanent display at the Senate department for urban development and the environment in central Berlin. The city has made use of Radio Frequency Identification technology (RFID) and Personal Digital Assistants (PDA) to provide audible information on 150 points of interest within the city model in order to better communicate the city’s characteristics with visitors. As with the manuals, the model was designed in collaboration with affected individuals, who acted as a consulting body to the development team. Some 200 students from Berlin Technical University also participated in the development process, during which the precise dimensions of the model were determined, financing was secured and the material was created.

The manuals and models were both financed through the Senate department for urban development and environment’s budget. The cost of the models was €134,000, including a 2011 upgrade and the standalone models. The cost of the manuals was €79,000 including content creation, design and translation.

One challenge linked to barrier-free construction is the preservation of historic structures. An individualised approach to each specific case helps to reconcile the necessity to preserve historical structures with the aim of responding the needs of the public. 

Barrier-free construction requires the full commitment of every partner. The manuals aren't conceived as a substitute for timely discussions with citizens and expert groups at an early stage of a building project. Instead, "early cooperation is the best guarantee of a comprehensive barrier-free design that will function down to the last detail and avoid the added costs of retrospective improvements", Berlin-Design for all / Accessible Public Buildings manual, General remarks, p.6.

Berlin’s influence has already spread further afield. The handbooks have been translated into English as well as into Russian by Moscow city council which intends to use them for the barrier-free transformation of the city. A dedicated website supports the dissemination of barrier-free concepts, providing an interactive platform where interested parties can share ideas, collaborate and exchange knowledge. The manuals are also available for download from the city’s website (see the links below).

- Cities in action - Grasping Berlin; Shaping Berlin, Making Berlin accessible to all - EUROCITIES, April 2013.

- Barrier-Free Construction, Berlin Senate Department for Urban Development and the Environment: http://www.stadtentwicklung.berlin.de/bauen/barrierefreies_bauen/index_en.shtml

- Cultural Heritage and Barrier-free Accessibility / Guideline and Student Projects, Beiträge zur Denkmalpflege, Heft 43 (english version), Landesdenkmalamt Berlin, Berlin, 1st edition 2015: http://www.stadtentwicklung.berlin.de/denkmal/landesdenkmalamt/download/neuerscheinungen/CulturalHeritage_and_Barrier-free_en.pdf 

Categories

External links / documents

KB_nachCD_en_web.pdf (application/pdf)apb_red_broschure_en.pdf (application/pdf)pos_green_broschure_en.pdf (application/pdf)CulturalHeritage_and_Barrier-free_en.pdf (application/pdf)Short film: Berlin accessible for all 2020Barrier-Free Construction, Berlin Senate Department for Urban Development and the EnvironmentMobidat database: Mobility for all

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Ingeborg Stude
Berlin, Germany

Ingeborg Stude

Individual | Dipl. Ing. Urban Planning
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Ingeborg Stude
Berlin, Germany

Ingeborg Stude

Individual | Dipl. Ing. Urban Planning
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