At the time of the Olympic Games, Ile-de-France transport is also put to the test. At the heart of this challenge, accessibility for people with reduced mobility. According to organizers’ estimates, nearly 4,000 journeys will be made each day in wheelchairs. Paris 2024 has promised the presence of 1,000 taxis adapted to these people. A shuttle service linking the major Parisian stations to the competition sites will also be set up during the Games. Jérôme Rousseau is 27 years old, he is in a wheelchair and directs the Novosports association for inclusive sport. Less than two months before the Olympics, he took part in the game of traveling the route which leads from the Town Hall to the Arena (Olympic site), Porte de la Chapelle, in the north of Paris. Unable to take the RER and metro, Jérôme preferred the bus.
The bus attempts several maneuvers to bring down the access ramp for people with reduced mobility, an inclined board to facilitate wheelchair access. Jérôme Rousseau often encounters this type of difficulty: “ There, we see that there is a problem… The post is in the way… »
Once you get on the bus, things aren’t any easier when it comes to pressing the button to request a stop: ” There are buttons to press, but I don’t have the strength and I don’t have access to them. The button is very very low “, explain the founder of Novosports. “ In my daily life, when I get home, I say where I’m going, but the problem is that if the driver forgets and I don’t say it before [l’arrêt] or he doesn’t hear me, I have to get off at the next stop. »
“We are always in anticipation”
To drive his 300 kilo wheelchair, Jérôme Rousseau activates a small lever using his right hand and the dexterity with which he handles his wheelchair is impressive. But it is not enough to get around the city easily.
“We have paving stones. Sometimes the cobblestones are real hell when you’re in a wheelchair. We are always in anticipation. There, opposite, for example, I see that there is work on a pedestrian crossing. If I cross, in front, there is a black truck that is right there and I cannot pass at all. » Jérôme Rousseau is therefore forced to travel on the road in the wrong direction. “ It’s very dangerous. I could get knocked down at any time. There are even holes, it’s not suitable at all “, he laments.
And the difficulties multiply: “ There is a truck right in front, it needs to brake. And then I have to roll to the right, but there is water on the ground; If I was in a manual wheelchair, my wheels would be full of urine. I’m in an electric wheelchair, but if there’s someone in a manual wheelchair, they really get into difficulty. »
An armchair that weighs 300 kilos
You then have to return to the sidewalk: “ What you need to understand is that the chair weighs 300 kilos, so it does not have the capacity to climb these kinds of steps. The toe clips are touching. So it’s really putting yourself and your chair in danger. », notes the founder of Novosports.
Passionate about sport, Jérôme Rousseau will be one of the 350,000 disabled people who will attend the Olympic Games. But while waiting for the tests, the first obstacles to overcome are found in the streets of Paris.
Read alsoParis 2024 Paralympic Games: the “inclusive club” to encourage the reception of disabled athletes