Hong Kong’s Equal Opportunities Commission (EOC) has launched its first practical guide on universal design for the catering industry. The guide aims to make restaurants more accessible.
EOC said a study by a rehabilitation organisation showed that more than 70 per cent of surveyed restaurants did not meet the rules for diners with disabilities. Common problems include entrances that wheelchairs cannot access, narrow aisles, seats that cannot be moved, and dark lighting.
The guide gives suggestions for restaurants to follow, such as replacing regular doors with automatic ones and installing wheelchair-accessible ramps. To make main passageways better, eateries can widen them and place tables and seats that can be moved aside.
“The commission hopes to further promote the concept of universal design so that we can build an accessible and barrier-free society,” said Dr Ferrick Chu Chung-man, the executive director of EOC.
