Welcome to Italy
EuroCurrency in Italy
Today’s Weather
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Basic Country Profile
Location: Southern Europe
Population: 61 million
Capital: Rome
Major language: Italian
Major religion: Christianity
Currency: Euro
Terrain: Varied
Climate: Mediterranean, mild
Dial code: +39
Time zone: GMT+2
Emergency numbers:
112- Universal European emergency number
113 – Police
115- Fire department
116- Road assistance
118 – Medical emergency and ambulance
Disability Legislations and Policies
Italy ratified the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities in 2009. In Italy, persons with disabilities are 3.2 million, including 2.5 million elderly. The share of women is higher than that of men: 7.1% vs. 3.8%. In more than half of the cases (55.5%), people have many types of functional problems (1.8 million are considered seriously disabled), while approximately 540,000 are aged under 65 and mostly of them live in the Southern Regions of the Country.
When it comes to work, according to the Italian legislation, an organization that hires 15 to 50 employees should have at least 1 or 2 disabled people. In case of larger companies, the law demands that 7% of the workforce consist of people with disabilities. Certain benefits, such as lower Social Security contribution, are granted to companies that hire people with disabilities. Workers with disabilities are supported by various legislative bodies. While there is no discrimination against the disabled in terms of employment or education, some amount of societal discrimination does exist.
Most of the major cities in Italy are now making efforts to accommodate people with disabilities. Many buildings and structures have installed ramps, so that people on wheelchairs face less difficulty getting in and out of the premises. The public transport has also become a lot more user-friendly for people with disabilities in the last few years. www.expatfocus.com
Travel Related Information
Transport
Trains
Italian trains have a few reserved seats for passengers in wheelchair, though passengers must be able to transfer from their wheelchair to the seat. Otherwise, some trains have compartments that can accommodate a wheelchair.
The Italian Railways offers services to people with disabilities to assist them during their train journey. These services can be arranged through a Blue Room (Sala Blu), an information point located in 14 main train stations. 251 smaller stations make up the PRM (Persons of Reduced Mobility) Assistance Circuit (circuito di assistenza) which provide more abbreviated services.
Staff at Blue Rooms can provide information, book seats, and arrange for a wheelchair, guide and assistance carrying 1 item of hand baggage.
Blue Room (Sala Blu)
Tel: 199 30 30 60
Hours: 07:00-21:00
It is suggested to make special arrangements at least 24 hours prior to travel for international travel and for email requests. Arrangements should be made at least 12 hours in advance for travel between or with connections at Assistance Circuit stations. For travel from 08:00-22:00 between main Blue Hall stations, notification should be given at least 1 hour before departure. Travellers should arrive at the assistance point in the station no later than 30 minutes before departure.
Italian international airports
In all major Italian airports there is a special service providing assistance persons with disability: wheelchair service, assistance during boarding and landing. The assistance will be arranged through the airline once the airline is notified by the passenger.
Bus travel
The website bus.it (in Italian) provides information on companies renting buses adapted to disabled people, by region.
Boats and ferries
The boat companies operating between the continent and the Italian islands have made most of their boats accessible. It is necessary to specify the nature of the disability when booking the ticket in order to get specific assistance when going on board.
Among the companies offering special assistance for persons with disability are:
Corsica Ferriesi
Tel: 06 3222469
FerroviedelloStato, DivisioneNavigazioneTrasportoPasseggeri
Tel: 0906 786478
Cars and motorways
The accessibility of Italian motorway service areas, restaurants, bathrooms and various amenities to disabled people is under development. On the national and provincial roads, this accessibility varies according to the area. For more information contact the Handicap Documentation Centre (Associazione Centro Documentazione Handicap/CDH).
Centro Documentazione Handicap
Tel: 800 018 537 / 051 641 5005
Parking
Cars parking in disabled parking spaces must display the blue disabled parking card or a European Community blue badge. Contact the local town hall for information on obtaining a blue badge.
General Information and Useful links
AziendaSociale Locale (ASL): Any person wishing to have their disability recognised in Italy should refer to the local ASL (Rome is divided into 4 ASL). Social invalidity benefits will only be delivered to people holding not just a residence permit but an Italian residence card, which is usually allocated after six years spent in the country. The same will be relevant to families wishing to apply for benefits for a child with a disability.
ConzortioSociale (COIN): The focus of the COIN is the social and economic integration of people with disabilities
General information
Tel: 800 810 810
Superabile: A website for people with disabilities, updated daily, provides useful information and tips on relevant laws, health issues, sport, hobbies and work
SuperAbile (in Italian)
Information is provided through a call centre
Tel: 800 810 810
Handylex: This is a useful national database containing news from the official paper GazzettaUfficiale and legal information relating to people with disabilities. Handylex (in Italian)
www.countryreports.org
www.accessibleitaly.com
www.west-info.eu