For 20 years, the BAR working group "barrier-free environment" has been advocating barrier-free environments in order to ensure the best possible social reintegration of disabled people and chronically ill people.
Members
The working group consists of representatives from organizations concerned with the rights of disabled people, as well as experts with special expertise and people personally concerned with disablement. As permanent guests, representatives of the following institutions are regularly participating in the working group sessions:
Federal Ministry of Transport, Building and Urban Affairs
Federal Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs
Federal Commissioner for Matters related to disabled people
Association of German Transport Companies
Deutsche Bahn AG
Association of Public Administration
Senator of Health, Environment and Consumer Protection
Research Association for Underground Transport Facilities
Swiss Federation for the Integration of Handicapped People
Austrian Social Insurance for Occupational Risks
Tasks
The BAR working group views itself as a forum for the exchange of ideas and information on upcoming events and legislative initiatives. The working group also aims at informing about already existing proposals and solutions from institutions and providers from all over Germany as well as from abroad, in order to spread and share knowledge and experience on rehabilitation with all players involved.
The working group continuously promotes the advancement of barrier-free environments in all areas of life by developing numerous concepts and ideas. All concepts and information the working group has established since 1993 can be found in its comprehensive working group publication.
Barrier-free Construction
In the area of construction, living and workplace the working group continuously advocates the application of the respective DIN standards.
www.din.dewww.is-argebau.deThe working group provides advice to the administration of the German federal states as well as commissioners for the disabled regarding barrier-free environments and state law against discrimination.
www.behindertenbeauftragter.de
Cooperation with Deutsche Bahn AG
The working group has established a close working relationship with Deutsche Bahn AG and provides advice in all questions concerning barrier-free environments. It the goal of BAR and Deutsche Bahn AG to develop solutions that can be applied in a great variety of scenarios and therefore contribute to a heighten barrier-free transportation on a broad level.
www.bahn.de
Profile of a Barrier-free Train Car
The Deutsche Bahn AG has developed profile requirements for a barrier-free railway car (local and interstate passenger transport). This profile includes essential aspects of barrier-free travel for people with limited mobility.
Deutsche Bahn AG (DB AG) Barrier-free Program
Currently the working group is assisting the Deutsche Bahn AG in developing a program in accordance with the law against the discrimination of disabled people. The program is a great success in the advancement of barrier-free environments. It clearly defines, that for the entire business division “local and interstate passenger transport” and all railway systems, yet to be developed, barrier-free car accessibility will be of major concern.
Directive 813 of the DB AG
A BAR expert group also supports Deutsche Bahn in the revision of its internal directive 813, which functions as a binding norm in terms of the barrier-free environments. The goal of the revision is to bring the directive more in coherence with the current DIN norms and the federal law against discrimination the discrimination of disabled people.
Cooperation with Connex
Since recently, the BAR working group has also been providing advice in terms of barrier-free environments in transportation to the largest private provider of train services in railway passenger transport, the Connex Regio Bahn GmbH.
www.connex-gruppe.de