More Accessible Public Transport, For Everyone (w/ @urbanmobilityexplained)

More Accessible Public Transport, For Everyone (w/ @urbanmobilityexplained)

What if the way your city is built
made you feel like you didn’t belong? That’s what we’re exploring
in this new video by looking at a topic that’s rarely discussed: how fat people
experience public transport. I’m Malaurie,
one of the producers of the Urban Mobility
Explained (UMX) YouTube channel. And we’re incredibly honoured
to have the chance to share our channel
here on RMTransit. It’s truly a pleasure. With the UMX team, we wanted to show
you what we do by giving you a
behind-the-scenes look throughout this video. We focus on making short
educational videos about sustainable urban mobility, not just public transport,
that hopefully can inspire you. This time, we give the mic to those
at the heart of the issue. In this video, we take you to Brussels,
Belgium, to explore how urban design can either
exclude or empower and what it takes to make mobility systems
more inclusive for everyone. Because sustainable transport
isn’t just about emissions or bike lanes. It’s also about equitable access
for everyone. That includes people of all body
types, abilities, and needs. Fat people face daily barriers on public
transit that are rarely talked about. Narrow seats,
crowded platforms, and these make transport inaccessible,
uncomfortable, even humiliating. So, let’s dive in! I really love my neighbourhood,
near Marolles. This is really my place
and I love walking around here. It’s very important to me
to keep this kind of mobility. Using public space,
being in Brussels, in the city, it seems ordinary,
but it’s not really. For me, as a fat person, sometimes it’s a battle to leave my home. Yet I also think
it’s a huge source of pride. I always wonder whether
I’m going to bother people or if I don’t belong. My name is Marie-Amah. I’ve always been a bit fat. I was actually a very average child. There was, however, this fear
deeply rooted in my family. I came across some photos of my family and realised there were many women
who looked like me or didn’t fit
the Western, European ideal
of extreme thinness. Turnstiles like these are a bit tight and I barely fit through. There are also devices like this one. It’s a small double-door exit,
which is quite practical. We’re lucky today. There’s plenty of space for me to sit down but that’s not the case every day, unfortunately. On public transport,
things tend to go relatively smoothly. People don’t usually
pay much attention to others. I think it gets tricky when there’s a situation
where everyone is uncomfortable. If there’s limited space
in a section of the metro, I won’t take the last seat
because I don’t want to make things tighter. I know many of us choose
first-class on trains, not just for our own comfort,
although that’s important too, but for the comfort of others. The cost of public transport
adds up really quickly,
or also more private solutions, like taxis.
Being comfortable costs more. It also costs more not to suffer
when you’re a fat person. There’s an image I dislike of a fat person
as someone who’s sad and never leaves their house. I often push myself
to try new places, new restaurants, new bars. I’m Pelphine and I co-founded
the association Fat friendly, which fights against fatphobia and for the rights of fat people. I also run the Instagram account Corpscool, which highlights positive initiatives
to change our view of fatness. Many people think fatphobia is just
about interpersonal relationships: mockery, insults, rejection,
exclusion from romantic opportunities. That is already a lot. But actually, it’s multifaceted and systemic. It impacts every aspect
of the lives of those affected. It includes things like
workplace and employment discrimination,
pay gaps, discrimination in healthcare, and the fact that
the world is inaccessible. It’s about furniture,
but also public transport. When I take the train,
often to go back to France, I’m forced to pay for first class because it’s a 7-hour journey. I can’t use the train toilets because the door opens inwards. I can get in, but I can’t close the door. During an 8.5-hour trip,
I can’t go to the toilet. It’s a huge source of stress for me. Before we dive deeper
into this topic, we wanted to take
a moment to tell you a little more about
who’s behind UMX, and why we made this video
in the first place. Behind the scenes, our team includes two
full-time producers and a growing network of more than 30 filmmakers
working across Europe and beyond. For this video,
we worked with two filmmakers, Muna and Quentin,
both based in Brussels, Belgium. They said that they had to organise
a shooting different than usual. But I would like to
let Muna explain it. So, during the Fat Friendly shoot,
and when choosing the location for our interview,
we initially considered my apartment, which was, reachable by public transport,
but ultimately it was not an option as it is on the top floor of a building
with no elevator. And our videographer’s place
was accessible in terms of space, but far from public transport,
and so at the end, we had to book a
taxi for them to come. And, yes, just finding a truly accessible
location required, logistical planning. I had never had to do before. And, it made me aware of how much effort moving around the city can take
when you’re a fat person. And, yes, it’s definitely
something I will take into account. Thanks a lot Muna
for sharing this with us. And now let’s go
back to the video! We decided to create an accessibility map or lack thereof
for fat individuals. Before going anywhere, I try to research the accessibility of that place. Very quickly, I realised that
almost everyone was doing this. So we thought if we create
a tool that provides this information, we could save people
a lot of time. It’s collaborative. Any fat person can contribute, adding a location and rating
its accessibility or lack thereof. Also transport information. Is there a bus or tram stop
within 50 metres, for example? Are there (PRM) parking spaces
in the immediate vicinity? My name is Christian de Strycker. I am Accessibility Manager at STIB. My job is to improve travel
for persons with reduced mobility. Persons with reduced mobility represent 30 to 40% of the general population. On a bus with ten people, four are affected by mobility issues. Today, at STIB, accessibility
is still largely viewed through the lens of people with disabilities,
who are officially recognised as such. Why is this? First of all, there are laws
that require us to act. There is also a network of associations
that have defined clear demands together which are straightforward to follow. We’ve also set up consultations
with this sector to understand their needs
and provide appropriate solutions. This can also indirectly address
the needs of fat individuals, since considering the needs of the
most constrained groups naturally includes challenges
faced by fat individuals. If you ask me
if we’re meeting these needs perfectly, of course my answer is no. This is because
I haven’t received specific demands and because this issue is
not yet widely addressed in Belgium.
This is one of the accessibility challenges
that STIB must tackle. If regulations evolve to include these needs, we not only have a duty to follow them, but we also have the opportunity
to go a bit further. My name is Apolline Vranken,
I am an architect by training, doctoral student and founder of
the association L’architecture qui dégenre. We are a multidisciplinary team
made up mostly by architects. Our aim is to bring gender and inclusion issues
to the heart of
architectural and urbanistic debate. In our work
on inclusion issues, we have also had to
address questions, such as seating. How do we sit
in public spaces? We’ve also had to confront
the issue of fatphobia, realising that some seating
is fundamentally exclusionary. We naturally think
of homeless individuals first. We know there’s an increasing
amount of hostile furniture, which is truly dismissive. As a result, other groups
also find themselves excluded with no option to sit
and claim space in town. But there’s also
the issue of maintenance. It’s not so much
the presence of a lift, but whether or not
the lift works. So today, we must ask ourselves
how we maintain existing infrastructure, how we take care
of this infrastructure and, by extension, the people using it. I believe the issue of
maintenance and care is key. Sometimes I dream that in the same way that
people with disabilities
can reserve spaces
in designated areas, the same could exist
for fat people. But that raises questions. Where do you set the bar to qualify for that? You’d need to have a card.
Since fatphobia isn’t
a recognised form of discrimination, there’s no budget allocated for it. More broadly, I think there should be awareness campaigns. There is a massive lack of equality data
on fatness and fatphobia. With a form of discrimination
that we cannot document, it’s hard to say to
public and political authorities: things have to change
because this is the reality. These are the kinds of stories
we like to cover at UMX, featuring different regions,
topics, and voices. If you enjoyed it and want to
discover more inspiring projects, explore key
urban mobility concepts, or if you are just curious
about what’s happening in Europe
and beyond, head over to the
UMX YouTube channel. See you there!

Watch this video ad-free on Nebula: https://nebula.tv/videos/rmtransit-more-accessible-public-transport-for-everyone

Have you ever wondered what it’s like to use public transport when the system wasn’t designed for your body? For many fat people, daily mobility means facing barriers like narrow seats, tight turnstiles, and inaccessible toilets. In Brussels, Belgium, the association *Fat Friendly* is working to change that.

In this video in collaboration with @urbanmobilityexplained , we explore how fat people experience public transport in Brussels, and how city planners and authorities can create more inclusive and accessible spaces for everyone! Mobility isn’t just about getting from A to B, it’s about making sure everyone feels comfortable along the way!

= Respect & Kindness =

We’re talking about making public transport work for all body types! Please keep comments respectful. Fatphobic or discriminatory remarks will be removed. Huge thanks to Marie-Amah and Pelphine from Fat Friendly for sharing their story on camera. Let’s make this a safe and welcoming space for everyone!

= SOURCES =

⛓️‍💥https://fatfriendly.be/
https://www.instagram.com/fatfriendlyasbl/
✨https://linktr.ee/fatfriendly

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= BEHIND THE VIDEO =

👏 Many thanks to Apolline Vranken, Christian de Strycker, Marie-Amah, Pelphine and Diana Vos for kindly participating in this video.

*Writing:* Muna Traub
*Video:* Sequence 22
*Editing:* Quentin Colombier
*Production:* Malaurie Chokoualé, Jana Cotillas and Andrea Santín
*Executive Production:* Martin Vendel and Gautam Rao
*Graphic and thumbnail design:* FAVO Studio

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