Boarding a van in a wheelchair

It's tough getting around on public transportation if you are disabled or elderly, and almost impossible at the height of the rush hour. But now, some of the 1.8 million people with disabilities and 27 million elderly in Japan are enjoying a better opportunity to get out on the town and live a more normal life, thanks to an innovative mobility project funded by The Nippon Foundation.

In 1994, the foundation began distributing specially equipped cars, vans, and buses that can be used by the disabled and elderly. Many of these special vehicles have electronically operated seats that can swing out to allow a person to step directly on the sidewalk without a difficult climb in or out of the vehicle.

Others come equipped with a rear entry ramp for persons in wheelchairs, making access and exit a more simplified matter. This has been a great help for the many social welfare groups throughout Japan that badly need such specially built automobiles and vans to provide services to and from facilities for the disabled and elderly.

This is particularly true in rural areas where the elderly population is increasing rapidly, and where social welfare organizations cannot provide enough vehicles that are easy to board and alight from.

A specially-equipped van

When this Nippon Foundation program began, these special cars, vans and buses were quite rare, and the needs of the welfare organizations and society in general were great. But as of the end of 2007, over 20,000 such vehicles have been donated throughout the country, and


they have become a familiar sight, perhaps even a symbol of a caring society.

Due to the influence of providing such vehicles to the disabled and elderly, the automobile industry is putting more effort and expertise into better designs that cover a wider range of car types. This has allowed individual families more independence and freedom to purchase vehicles with which they can transport their disabled or elderly members without calling on special welfare services.

At a time when the elderly population is growing, a compassionate society is coming up with more ideas to allow people in their golden years, and the disabled, to have more freedom of movement, As a result, they now have a chance for a more satisfying life style. The Nippon Foundation continues to donate these special vehicles free of charge as a service to society.