1 of 19

The Future of Global-Scale Spatial Data Collection and Analyses on Urban (in)Accessibility for People with Disabilities

Jon E. Froehlich^α, Fabio Miranda^β, Maryam Hosseini^ζ,ι, Nick Bolten^γ, Anat Caspi^γ, Roberto M. Cesar Jr.^δ, Holger Dieterich^ε, Yochai Eisenberg^β, �Victor Pineda^η, Manaswi Saha^α, Mikey Saugstad^α, Andres Sevtsuk^θ, Claudio T. Silva^ι, Eric K. Tokuda^γ, Sebastian Felix Zappe^ε

^αMakeability Lab, U. of Washington; ^βU. of Illinois, Chicago; ^ζRutgers University; ^γTaskar Center, UW;� ^δU. of São Paulo; ^εSozialhelden e.V., Germany; ^ηInclusive Cities Lab, U. of California, Berkeley; ^θMIT; ^ιNYU

The 2nd Spatial Data Science Symposium�The two-page session paper

2 of 19

Lead Organizers

SDSS’21: Future of urban accessibility

Jon E. Froehlich

Computer Science

Univ of Washington

Fabio Miranda

Computer Science

Univ of Illinois at Chicago

Maryam Hosseini

Computer Science/Urban Systems

NYU/Rutgers

3 of 19

[There is a] widespread lack of accessibility in built environments, from roads and housing, to public building and spaces

- UN new urban agenda 2020

See Section 1.1.3

4 of 19

On this slide, I’m showing pictures of inaccessible infrastructure such as sidewalks without curb ramps, business fronts with stairs and no ramps, and inaccessible buses, bus stops, rail stations, pedestrian signal lights, and more

all which contributes to and further reinforces systemic exclusion of people with disabilities but also impacts public health, physical activity, and quality of life for all.

—--

Images from:

Wheelchair user can’t press pedestrian signal: https://www.access-board.gov/files/prowag/planning-and-design-for-alterations.pdf
Wheelchair on street: https://www.montgomerycountymd.gov/DGS-ADA/Transportation.html
Cane users + stairs: https://www.law.com/newyorklawjournal/almID/1202721537148/NYC-Courthouses-Inaccessible-for-the-Disabled-Report-Finds/?slreturn=20211113075806
Wheelchair + stairs: https://www.gettyimages.com/photos/uneven-sidewalk
Snow removal: https://ggwash.org/view/70643/why-are-cars-prioritized-over-people-walking-and-using-transit-when-it-snows
Bus: https://scroll.in/roving/894005/in-photos-why-wheelchair-users-in-delhi-find-it-difficult-to-use-buses-even-low-floor-ones
Sidewalk ends: https://www.hjnews.com/news/local/missing-pieces-why-logans-sidewalks-have-gaps-and-how-the-city-fills-them/article_65006d64-f809-5acc-9486-ea92ee3b7cb2.html

5 of 19

100,000 Taxi Trips in NYC

Walker at al., Mapbox

6 of 19

Let’s make urban accessibility/mobility, the built environment, and people with disabilities a first-class concern

7 of 19

https://accessmap.io/

8 of 19

https://wheelmap.org

9 of 19

Overarching Goals

Meet people, network

Identify and discuss grand challenges and open questions

Spur new collaborations and projects

SDSS’21: Future of urban accessibility

10 of 19

Schedule

SDSS’21: Future of urban accessibility

10:15-10:20 AM	Introduction. Arrivals + overview of session
10:20-10:35 AM	~4 talks (3 mins each)
10:35-10:55 AM	Discussion 1 (breakouts)
10:55-11:10 AM	~4 talks (3 mins each)
11:10-11:30 AM	Discussion 2 (breakouts)
11:30-11:45 AM	Full-Group synthesis

11 of 19

3-min Lightning talks

SDSS’21: Future of urban accessibility

Round One

Radical Inclusive and Accessible Cities

Victor Pineda, WorldEnabled.org

Pedestrian Density Estimation Using Moving Cameras

Eric K. Tokuda & Roberto M. Cesar Jr, University of São Paulo

Data Standards to Empower Complete Trips

Anat Caspi, University of Washington

A Walk/Roll in the City

Maryam Hosseini and Claudio Silva, NYU; Fabio Miranda, UIC

Round Two

Crowd+AI Tools for Scalable Sidewalk Assessments

Jon E. Froehlich, U. of Washington; Project Sidewalk Team

Spatial Data for Planning the Accessible City

Yochai Eisenberg, University of Illinois, Chicago

Predicting Pedestrian Flows Along City Streets.

Andres Sevtsuk, MIT

How to Make Data Models More Usable for Activism

Holger Dieterich & Sebastian Felix Zappe, Sozialhelden e.V., Germany

12 of 19

3-min Lightning talks: Round 1

SDSS’21: Future of urban accessibility

Radical Inclusive & Accessible Cities

Victor Pineda, PhD

WorldEnabled.org

Pedestrian Density Estimation �Using Moving Cameras

Eric K. Tokuda, PhD & Roberto M. Cesar Jr., PhD

University Of São Paulo

Data Standards to Empower Complete Trips

Anat Caspi, PhD

University of Washington

A Walk/Roll in the City

Maryam Hosseini, PhD Candidate,

Fabio Miranda, PhD,

& Claudio Silva, PhD

NYU/Rutgers, UIC & NYU

13 of 19

breakouts: Airmeet tables

SDSS’21: Future of urban accessibility

14 of 19

breakout 1: room tables

SDSS’21: Future of urban accessibility

Chair: Jon E. Froehlich�Session Notes Link

Table 1�Future of Data Collection: Wheelchairs, Drones, and AI

Chair: Fabio Miranda�Session Notes Link

Table 2�Global-Scale Analysis and Visualization

Chair: Yochai Eisenberg�Session Notes Link

Table 3�Policy Problems, Initiatives, and Barriers

Chair: Maryam Hosseini�Session Notes Link

Table 4�New Modeling Approaches for Health, Sustainability, & Walkability

Chair: Holger Dieterich�Session Notes Link

Table 5�Data Standards: Nothing Happens without a Standard

Tables 6+

Open discussion topics

Session Notes Link

15 of 19

Each breakout room has a google doc for notes

SDSS’21: Future of urban accessibility

Google Drive Link

16 of 19

Google Drive Link to discussion notes

SDSS’21: Future of urban accessibility

Google Drive Link

17 of 19

3-min Lightning talks: Round 2

SDSS’21: Future of urban accessibility

Crowd+AI for Scalable Sidewalk Assessments

Jon E. Froehlich, PhD

University of Washington

How to Make Your Data Models More Usable for Activism

Holger Dieterich & Sebastian Felix Zappe

Sozialhelden e.V., Germany

Predicting Pedestrian Flows Along City Streets

Andres Sevtsuk

MIT

Spatial Data for Planning the Accessible City

Yochai Eisenberg

University of Illinois, Chicago

18 of 19

breakout 2: room tables

SDSS’21: Future of urban accessibility

Chair: Maryam Hosseini�Session Notes Link

Table 1�Future of Data Collection: Wheelchairs, Drones, and AI

Chair: Jon E. Froehlich�Session Notes Link

Table 2�Global-Scale Analysis and Visualization

Chair: Anat Caspi�Session Notes Link

Table 3�Policy Problems, Initiatives, and Barriers

Chair: Fabio Miranda�Session Notes Link

Table 4�New Modeling Approaches for Health, Sustainability, & Walkability

Chair: Sebastian Felix Zappe�Session Notes Link

Table 5�Data Standards: Nothing Happens without a Standard

Tables 6+

Open discussion topics

Session Notes Link

19 of 19

Rapid Synthesis

Session chairs enumerate some key points and open questions from your discussions

Table 1: Future of Data Collection: Wheelchairs, Drones, and AI�Moderators: Jon (Breakout 1), Maryam (Breakout 2)�

Table 2: Global-Scale Analysis & Visualization

Moderators: Fabio (Session 1), Jon (Session 2)�

Table 3: Policy Problems, Initiatives, and Barriers

Moderators: Yochai (Session 1), Anat (Session 2)�

Table 4: New Modeling Approaches for Health, Sustainability, Walkability

Moderators: Maryam (Session 1), Fabio (Session 2)�

Table 5: Data Standard: Nothing Happens without a Standard

Moderators: Holger (Session 1), Sebastian (Session 2)

SDSS’21: Future of urban accessibility