Rome - Post Report Question and Answers
Would someone with physical disabilities have difficulties living in this city?
Yes. Absolutely. Although we have a local family that takes their wheelchair bound son out for walks, almost all apartments have stairs to enter and then there is an elevator. - Aug 2024
Yes, Rome is a historic city so the city struggles to rebuild their infrastructure to be handicap accessible. The building codes are to preserve history so they can't just bulldoze city blocks and rebuild them. A common problem in many European cities. - Sep 2022
Moderate. Most buildings have at least small, ancient elevators but not all staircases are ramped. In the city, difficulty with blocked sidewalks, cobblestones, curbs, etc. - Oct 2014
Many! Rome is full of cobblestoned streets and uneven or broken sidewalks which are usually blocked by motorcycles, cars, dog poop, construction sites, restaurants that set up tables willy-nilly outside their establishment, etc. Handicap/stroller ramps are largely non-existent, and when they do exist they are often blocked or broken. Often, if a building has an elevator (not a given!), it is usually small and cramped (certainly no room for a wheelchair or stroller). Again, where the physical facility is missing, Italians are generally willing to help a person in need. - May 2013
Rome is horrible for wheel-chairs and strollers. It is hilly, lined with centuries-old cobblestones, and pedestrians fight with motorinis and parked cars on the sidewalks. - Apr 2012
Getting anywhere. Walking through cobblestones, potholes, debris, broken sidewalks, and deteriorating roads is hard enough for the able-bodied. Sidewalks are also covered with urine and feces of various species and you wouldn't want to roll a wheelchair back into your home after an outing without first sanitizing it. - Aug 2010
Rome would be impossible! I spend most of my time pushing a stroller, so I can only imagine. There are so many steps, hills, narrow sidewalks, and cars are always parked in the crosswalks. Elevators are small and many restaurants or cafes have their bathrooms either up or downstairs. - Apr 2009
As a mother of a toddler in a stroller, I really feel for the wheel-chair bound in Italy. As I said before, sidewalks are narrow, ramps are rare, elevators are tiny, doors narrow, and Rome is very hilly. It's rare to find restrooms that are properly equipped for the wheel-chair bound. I can't even imagine grocery shopping, as all the aisles are pretty narrow. Having said that, there are handicapped parking spaces in parking lots, and some traffic signals for the visually-disabled. Also, Italians love their dogs, and probably would not be in the least offended by service animals. Just the same, it's a tough town to get around in if you have any mobility issues at all. - Feb 2008
Lack of handicapped facilities everywhere. Some street corners have ramps but not all. Many sidewalks are littered with potholes. I think those in wheelchairs would find Rome very frustrating. - Feb 2008
