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Beyond Physical Accessibility: Lived Experience and Inclusive Urban Governance

Can a city be physically accessible without being genuinely inclusive? 

This question challenges approaches to urban accessibility centred primarily on infrastructure provision and technical compliance. Although removing physical barriers is essential, it does not necessarily ensure independent movement, equal participation or a meaningful experience of urban life. This article argues that inclusive urban mobility also depends on how cities incorporate lived experience, organise participation and translate accessibility knowledge into municipal decisions.

Drawing on the third Transnational Network Meeting of the URBACT TN C.ALL – Accessible Cities for All Transfer Network, held in Bratislava on 6–7 October 2026, the article examines the Learning Lab as an exploratory qualitative case study. Its methodological sequence: Learn, Experience, Harvest, Co-design and Commit, connected urban observation, stakeholder dialogue, collaborative interpretation and preliminary proposals for local testing.

The analysis develops five interconnected dimensions of inclusive mobility governance: whole-journey accessibility assessment, participatory knowledge production, institutional coordination, context-sensitive experimentation and continuous evaluation. Examples from Komotini and participating European partners illustrate how these dimensions may inform the adaptation of accessibility practices to different local circumstances. These examples represent emerging approaches rather than completed interventions with demonstrated outcomes.

The article concludes that moving from accessible infrastructure towards inclusive urban environments requires changes not only in urban design, but also in how planning knowledge is produced and acted upon. Transnational learning can support this transition by connecting technical expertise with lived experience. Its lasting contribution, however, depends on whether learning influences institutional responsibilities, investment priorities and everyday urban experiences.

Keywords: urban accessibility, inclusive urban mobility, lived experience, participatory governance, accessibility assessment, policy transfer, urban experimentation, URBACT TN C.ALL.

From local innovation to European transfer: Komotini and the future of accessible cities

From local innovation to European transfer: Komotini and the future of accessible cities

AUTHOR: IO CHATZIVARYTI, LEAD EXPERT FOR URBACT TN C.ALL

As European cities face growing pressure to create more inclusive, sustainable, and people-centred urban environments, accessibility is increasingly moving from the margins of policy discussion to the centre of urban governance. Yet for many municipalities, especially medium-sized cities, translating accessibility commitments into coherent action remains a challenge. Fragmented planning, limited technical capacity, and insufficient stakeholder coordination often prevent accessibility from becoming a truly systemic urban priority.

The URBACT Transfer Network C.ALL – Accessible Cities for All offers an alternative approach. Led by Komotini, the network explores how accessibility can evolve from isolated interventions into an integrated governance model linking mobility, public space, participation, digital innovation, and social inclusion. At the heart of the network lies the transfer of the good practice “Komotini Accessible City for All”, a methodology developed progressively over two decades through cooperation between the municipality, civil society organisations, technical experts, and people with disabilities themselves.

Rather than presenting accessibility as a technical checklist, the Komotini approach treats it as a continuous urban process embedded across all areas of city planning. Seven European partner cities — Jarosław, San Lucido, Bratislava, Galway, Dubrovnik, Pentágono Urbano in Portugal, and Zrenjanin — are working to adapt this methodology to their own local realities through study visits, stakeholder engagement, and peer-learning activities.

Transfer Diary TNM#2 Pentágono Urbano , 11 & 12 June 2026

We arrived in the Pentágono Urbano; a pioneering inter-municipal urban area connecting five cities: Braga, Guimarães, Famalicão, Viana do Castelo and Barcelos, with a shared professional agenda: understanding how inclusive accessibility and smart urban solutions can be planned, implemented and transferred across different city contexts. Over two days, CALL Transfer Network partners engaged in site visits, peer-to-peer workshops and practitioner exchanges, examining how barrier-free public space, accessible transport infrastructure, digital mobility tools and multi-stakeholder governance can work together to create cities that leave no one behind.

📅 Day 1 

• Arrival & welcome session
• Site visit to Pentágono Urbano
• Evening reflection walk

📅 Day 2

• Thematic workshops
• Partner exchange
• Closing circle & next steps