Recognizing Barriers | Accessibility at Seneca | Seneca Polytechnic

A barrier is anything that keeps a person with a disability from participating fully in society because of his or her disability. Barriers are obstacles and make shopping, working, going to a movie or taking public transit difficult, and sometimes impossible, for people with disabilities. Seneca's goal is to be barrier-free by 2025.

Types of barriers

• Attitudinal - (the biggest obstacle of all) negative attitudes of employers and co-workers
• Architectural - design, layout and components of buildings and structures create barriers
• Physical - features of the environment that impede access such as a washroom sink placed too high
• Communication - the transmission, reception and interpretation of information
• Information - anything that negatively affects access to information
• Technological - as a result of design of technology and devices or from the absence of appropriate assistive devices
• Systemic - barriers that are a result of an organization's policies, practices and protocols if they restrict persons with disabilities

Physical barriers

Physical barriers can be:

• steps, stairs and elevators that are too small or not assigned for use by people with disabilities
• small washrooms
• counters at inconvenient heights
• narrow aisles or pathways
• heavy doors
• handles, latches and locks that are difficult to use
• curbs
• obstructed pathways
• poor lighting or signage
• no Braille signage
• water fountains, pay telephone and parking meter coin slots that are too high
• computer screens that are too small
• telephones that don’t have telecommunications device for the deaf (TDD or TTY)
• uneven floors or pathways
• websites with no alternative text formats