Viewing results 1 - 6 of 3
As part of a scheme to update its fleet of passenger railway carriages, Kazakhstan is set to increase its volume of ‘Invacarriages’, specially adapted to cater for travellers with special physical needs and impaired mobility. The Kazakh Ministry of Transport has announced that 14 carriages designed for the comfort of passengers in the sector, will be purchased this year, adding to the seven already operating on the Kyzylorda – Semey, Pavlodar – Turkestan, and Aktau – Aktobe routes. In 2023, 11 Invacarriages were commissioned and today, Kazakhstan boasts 110 trains with specialized carriages for passengers with impaired mobility. Manufactured to safety standards in Kazakhstan, the Invacarriages offer more space for the free movement of wheelchairs, lifts, and alarm buttons. In addition to the train carriages, Kazakhstan is also expanding its fleet of Invataxis; specially adapted minivans equipped with wheelchair-friendly hydraulic lifts. This year alone, the number of Invataxis operating in the capital, Astana, has risen by 26 to 145, and a total of 119 Invataxi services with the combined fleet of 760 vehicles, currently operate in the country’s regions.
Kazakhstan’s Ministry of Transport has announced the completion of major renovation of railway stations in the southern city of Shymkent and the northern city of Pavlodar. Built in the 1960s, Shymkent railway station, used daily by several thousand passengers , had been in need of attention for some 20 years. Following major reconstruction, the building has been furnished with a new and attractive façade, an additional entrance from the city side and another exit from the platform. The number of ticket offices has increased from six to eight and coupled with extensions to the overall area, the station now has the capacity to serve 6 thousand passengers a day. Renovation of Pavlodar’s forty-year-old station, last repaired in 2004-05, was also completed this year. Lighting, ventilation, water supply and heating systems have been replaced, and both the ticket offices and old stained-glass windows, refurbished. New facilities include a storage room and pharmacy as well as elevators and lifts to aid access for travellers with mobility issues. In addition to a communal waiting room, the station boasts a separate room for women as well as a children’s play area. In Kazakhstan, a country the size of Western Europe, railways remain an important and relatively cheap mode of transport for both locals and tourists alike.
According to statistics issued by Kazakhstan’s Ministry of Labor and Social Protection of the Population on 1 April, 730.5 thousand people with disabilities live in Kazakhstan, equivalent to 3.6% of the total population. Amongst the 419.9,000 of working age, over 11.8,000 have received state support in securing employment, and today, 104.8,000 or 27.4% have jobs. In adherence to the Social Code of Kazakhstan, companies and organizations with at least 50 employees are required to establish a quota of jobs for persons with disabilities in the amount of 2% to 4%. The only exclusions are positions involving heavy manual work and potentially dangerous working conditions. In January-March alone, 3.9,000 people with disabilities were employed under the quota, 12 people received short-term vocational training, and 1.2,000 were trained in the rudiments of entrepreneurship. Since 2018, subsidies have also been available to help cover employers’ costs of equipping and creating specialized workplaces for persons with disabilities.
