Brazil’s Ministry of Cities launched, today, the Transportation for All course, by which it intends to prepare 100 thousand drivers and transportation workers to deal with handicapped, elderly, and pregnant citizens.
“The idea is to make it possible for all vehicle drivers in the country, especially the ones in public transportation, to acquire the skill and sensitivity to deal with handicapped individuals, enlarging their access to the country’s transportation system,” affirmed Minister Olívio Dutra.
The course is being developed in partnership with the Social Service of Transportation (Sest) and the National Transportation Apprenticeship Service (Senat).
According to Dutra, the course is part of a broader program aimed at guaranteeing handicapped individuals access to all public spaces.
He observed that it is common for ramps to be missing, for sidewalks to be narrowed by poles or horizontal signs, and, in some cases, for there to be no sidewalk at all.
The Transportation for All course will be administered at long distance over the Internet.
“The classes are meant to esteem actions against discrimination and promote the participation of professional drivers in the defense of the elderly and the handicapped,” commented the vice-president of the National Confederation of Transport (CNT), Newton Gibson.
ABr
