2023-12-17 16:05:00
A chair which appears as a folding seat which unfolds, attached to a traffic light, in front of a pedestrian crossing: it is a chair of solidarity. Its goal: to allow elderly people or people with reduced mobility to take a break while traveling on foot. Two were installed in the commune of Jette, in the Brussels Region. The first is located at the corner between Boulevard De Smet de Naeyer and Rue Lenoir. The second is near the Belgica roundregarding, avenue Carton de Wiart.
Who had the idea of developing this device? In fact, there are several actors and actresses behind this project, set up in mid-November and in the test phase until April 2024.
This chair meets a real need
Hélène Mahillon is a member of committee of wise men and elders of the non-profit organization jettoise Labolobo. The aim of this association is to break age-related stereotypes and fight once morest the isolation of seniors.
“Our committee met and thought regarding things that were missing to help us with our soft mobility“, explains Hélène Mahillon, who recently had knee surgery, and is already used to using the solidarity chair on Boulevard de Naeyer. “I move with a cane between the Place du Miroir and the Jette cemetery, two central places in the town. This supportive chair allows me to take a break between two races. It’s very practical because this chair is in my way. A journey tires me very quickly. This chair therefore responds to a real need, a real demand.“
What aren’t the public benches full of? “They are not located on a path, on a pedestrian crossing. They have also not been installed where they might be useful for people with reduced mobility“, people with disabilities, seniors or even pregnant women…
If the wish came from the committee of wise men, the realization is to the credit of three interior architects and designers, working in particular on social themes in collaboration with users. “As students, we set up a project with a Schaerbeek association. In a workshop, seniors explained that they were not comfortable going from home to, for example, a public transport stop, that the journeys were too long. Traveling stressed them out because they said they did not know where any seats were located in public spaces so they might take a break.“, recalls Lona Guilhot-Vitry, interior designer. “The consequence: it accentuated the isolation of certain people.“
Those who were then students at ESA Saint-Luc are working on a project for a one-off, compact seat that takes up little space. “The idea was that it might be easily integrated into the existing urban space and that it would be a solution that might respond to an immediate problem, without having to modify the entire urban space.“, adds Lona Guilhot-Vitry.
We had to remember not to clutter the sidewalks
“We had to think regarding not cluttering the sidewalks, which already are, with people who are also there“, continues Marjane Laâbas, social designer and interior architect. “This is why we designed a folding seat. One of the chairs is green and easy to spot, just like the second which is white. We first developed different prototypes which we evolved thanks to comments from seniors.“
Comments relating for example to the height in relation to the ground”which is 50 centimeters“, continues Marie Dassonneville, object and social innovation designer, third member of the design team. “The seat is 50 centimeters by 50 centimeters. The first chair has a hollow tubular steel structure, green in color. The cladding is made of wood. We have also collaborated with Brussels companies. For the other chair, the structure remains in metal. But its design is more original with a white color and a recycled plastic covering, also thanks to a local company.“
Sustainable? These chairs are: “They had to be able to last over time since they are located outside.“
The appearance of these chairs on Boulevard de Naeyer and Avenue de Wiart is recent. Their presence is indicated by posters mentioning a QR code to scan, an email address, a telephone number, an Instagram account. “The idea is to obtain feedback from users because we want to continue improving this system according to the different needs expressed.“, adds Marjane Laâbas. “For the moment, the feedback is very positive. People are asking for more solidarity chairs.“
Because two united chairs are good. “But the ambition is for there to be more, in Jette and elsewhere in the Brussels Region.“Certainly at the end of the evaluation at the end of the testing phase.
This solidarity chair project in Jet received funding from Brussels Mobility, the regional mobility administration.
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