Platform that rates accessibility of public spaces for disabled goes global

BENGALURU: Digital solutions for infrastructure accessibility Yes to Access (YTA), developed by Bengaluru-based The Association of People with Disability (APD) is going global. It will be presented at the United Nations Second World Summit for Social Development, being held in Doha, Qatar, from November 4-6. YTA is an AI-powered, community-led platform that maps and rates the accessibility of public spaces. The platform has mapped over 1.96 lakh spaces across 15 states with the help of over 10,000 citizen volunteers under the Sugamya Yatra initiative. Data collected through YTA supports accessibility audits and informs of inclusive urban planning. Accessibility is essential to place people at the centre of development. It enables persons with disabilities to participate fully in education, work and community life. Without accessibility, the goals of poverty eradication, full employment and social integration remain incomplete, said Jacob Kurien, Honorary Secretary and Trustee, APD, and a panellist presenting YTA at the UN Second World Summit. In 2021, APDs accessibility study for Karnatakas Directorate of Municipal Administration revealed that expert audits, while valuable, are resource-intensive and unscalable. This insight inspired Yes to Access, an app to democratize accessibility checks through a simple, decentralised checklist that empowers citizens to identify and report barriers in their own communities, and for it to be represented on a map, Kurien said. The apps AI-assisted interface and intuitive design make it simple for anyone to use, helping citizens, including persons with disabilities, to map, rate, and report accessibility barriers around them. What began as a community effort has grown into a citizen-led accessibility movement, he said. Asked about the expected outcome of presenting this at the UN, Kurien said, It is to showcase Yes to Access as a model from India that demonstrates good practices in inclusive, community-driven accessibility checks. The initiative strengthens social cohesion by empowering persons with disabilities and citizens to build more inclusive spaces together. Participation will help share these learnings globally, form partnerships, and gather insights to enhance its impact and reach. This is APDs second UN event in two weeks. Last week, a delegation had been invited to Geneva to talk about their inclusive education programme. Additional Secretary of the Department of Empowerment of Persons with Disabilities (DEPwD), Government of India, Manmeet Nanda, who is also among the panellists of the Breaking Barriers, Building Inclusion Through Yes To Access session, said, AI technologies ... empower PwDs to lead independent lives, access opportunities and contribute meaningfully to society. However, true inclusion demands collaborative efforts governments, NGOs, tech innovators and communities must align to ensure equitable deployment, addressing digital divides and ethical concerns like data privacy.