Saturday, June 21, 2014

Designing A Wheelchair Gate


In Penang, many motorcyclists often take advantage of the ramps to enter places that are not meant for them. They would enter hawker centers or pedestrian walkways by using the ramps meant for the disabled. The problem is so rampant that often the authority has to resort to placing chains across the ramps to stop these thoughtless people. I believe we can overcome this problem by building a wheelchair gate near the entry or exit point of a ramp.



A wheelchair gate (see drawings above) is a simple structure that allows wheelchair user to get through but not motorcycle. It is based on the principle that a motorcycle is much longer than a wheelchair and thus requires a larger turning radius. 


You can use any material to make wheelchair gate as long as the passage way is big enough for a wheelchair and too small for a motorcycle to turn inside. I think you can even arrange big flower pots following the layout plan below. The dimension given here is based on the space needed for a wheelchair to pass through a passage way.





You can find a video of wheelchair gate HERE. The wheelchair gate is located at MPPP’s “Turn Key” project at Patani Road, Penang.