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The fact that you rarely see any of the city’s half a million disabled people in public is a telling sign that Shanghai is not particularly accommodating for people with disabilities. Most metro stations don’t provide lifts, disabled public toilets hardly exist, very few roads have ramp access, only one bus route offers barrier-free facilities (line 926) and reportedly only one tax in the entire city can remove its seats to make room for a wheelchair. Despite regulations requiring newly constructed buildings to provide adequate facilities, most neglect to do so, claiming that the infrequency of their usage makes them redundant or at least not worthy of good maintenance. Only in the airports and high-end hotels are you sure to find functioning disabled toilets, for example.

The problem lies in many Chinese people’s self-admitted prejudices towards disable people, who have traditionally been seen as a burden on society. Shanghai’s hosting of the Special Olympics in October 2007 should go some way towards changing those attitudes. The Shanghai Disabled Persons’ Federation, in conjunction with the Shanghai Urban Transport Management Bureau, have pledged to provide at least 90 taxis and 30 more buses with wheelchair access, and have already added more than 1,000km of special lanes for the blind (mang dao) to the city’s pavements. Forty six of the downtown parks have special Braille maps by their entrances, and in April 2007 the local authorities announced their plans to train guide dogs for the blind. Shanghai law, however, prohibits any dogs from entering public buildings or public transport.