Co-designing the Urban Accessibility. An Inclusive Fruition Service in the Bologna University Area

The paper deals with accessibility issues at district scale assuming the perspective developed in the “ROCK - Regeneration and Optimisation of Cultural heritage in creative and Knowledge cities”, a three years Research Innovation Action project funded by the EU Horizon 2020 Research and Innovation Programme (Grant Agreement N. 730280). ROCK is currently in its third year of activity and it is coordinated by Bologna Municipality with the technical-scientific assistance of the University of Bologna. ROCK field of research, inquiry and action are urban historic contexts, assuming Cultural Heritage as leading engine for their sustainable development, economic growth and regeneration. In ROCK, accessibility is connected to all the aspects that determine the possibility to fully participate to urban life: overcoming of physical and economic barriers, sense of security, equal access to institutions, cultural productions, empowerment, information and opportunities. The contribution focuses on the participatory approach adopted by the city of Bologna in testing this meaning of accessibility in a real environment and on the co-production path to design a service for inclusive fruition aimed at fostering accessibility to the university area and its Cultural Heritage. This experience, called “U-Area for all” has started in March 2019 and involves institutions, actors of the area, students, residents and people with disabilities in several initiatives, such as the co-mapping of urban itineraries using specific GPS technological devices.