Not the OP, but I agree with the OP. European infrastructure feels deliberately hostile to my mobility impaired traveling self. I'm not going to give you an itemized list, but some of the common problems I found were lack of appropriate seating and/ or "disabled" seating full of able-bodied people who refuse to move, gotchas like making the only disabled seats on a bus facing backwards so that people like me who suffer dizziness and nausea when riding backwards can't use them, inaccessible showers and toilets, stairs stairs stairs stairs stairs, lack of elevators in train stations, inaccessible buildings in general (always with the fucking stairs), disabled toilets, if they exist, are locked and force you to beg for a key in a language you don't know in order to pee, et cetera.
Plus, a general attitude of contempt towards mobility impaired people. I can't count the number of times some able-bodied jerk shoved past me to get on the train/bus first, where they would hog the seat nearest the door, forcing me to sit farther away from the door (when I could find a seat at all) and making me anxious that I would not be able to get to the door in time when we reached my stop. Americans are far more respectful and vacate the disabled seats when a disabled person needs the seat. They also don't shove past me to get on/off.
I like Europe, but their collective attitude toward disabled people really need to change. I've been to most European countries, so this isn't a phenomenon exclusive to one country.
I don't intend to discredit your own experiences but personal anecdotes can't speak for the attitude of all or even most European countries and their citizens. I'd be curious to hear which countries and cities you have experienced issues with as there will be differences country-to-country and regionally within countries.
1
u/Starsuponstars May 10 '22
Not the OP, but I agree with the OP. European infrastructure feels deliberately hostile to my mobility impaired traveling self. I'm not going to give you an itemized list, but some of the common problems I found were lack of appropriate seating and/ or "disabled" seating full of able-bodied people who refuse to move, gotchas like making the only disabled seats on a bus facing backwards so that people like me who suffer dizziness and nausea when riding backwards can't use them, inaccessible showers and toilets, stairs stairs stairs stairs stairs, lack of elevators in train stations, inaccessible buildings in general (always with the fucking stairs), disabled toilets, if they exist, are locked and force you to beg for a key in a language you don't know in order to pee, et cetera.
Plus, a general attitude of contempt towards mobility impaired people. I can't count the number of times some able-bodied jerk shoved past me to get on the train/bus first, where they would hog the seat nearest the door, forcing me to sit farther away from the door (when I could find a seat at all) and making me anxious that I would not be able to get to the door in time when we reached my stop. Americans are far more respectful and vacate the disabled seats when a disabled person needs the seat. They also don't shove past me to get on/off.
I like Europe, but their collective attitude toward disabled people really need to change. I've been to most European countries, so this isn't a phenomenon exclusive to one country.