Faculty of Arts

Nám. Jana Palacha 1/2

Prague 1, 110 00

front desk contact: +420 221 619 111

web: www.ff.cuni.cz

Support for students and applicants with special needs at the faculty is provided by:

PhDr. Mgr. David Čáp, tel. 221 619 676, david.cap@ff.cuni.cz

Overview of accessibility

Description of the building

The historic building with two underground floors and five above-ground floors is the main building of the Faculty of Arts.

Entrance

The surface of the access pavement is made of flat mosaic tiles. The main entrance to the building is not barrier-free (7 steps up). The single door (width 97 cm) opens mechanically towards the outside. The doorbell (height 137 cm) is located directly on the door above the stairs. Behind the entrance, there is a reception area (counter height 90 cm), from which another staircase leads to the central corridor of the elevated ground floor (6 steps up).

A locked side entrance is available from Valentinská Street. The surface of the access pavement is flat mosaic tiles, which turn into coarse tiling before entering the courtyard. The single door (width 100 cm) with a steep height-adjustment ramp (gradient 20%, length 25 cm) and threshold (height 2 cm) opens mechanically towards the outside. The doorbell (height 113 cm) is located on the left of the entrance on the outside (from the street) and on the right (height 99 cm) on the inside (from the courtyard). After the entrance, there is a passageway to the courtyard with an asphalt surface, which has uneven spots and a transverse slope (up to 5%).

In the courtyard, there are two lifts, a façade lift at the main (western) wing and the second lift located in the rear (eastern) part of the building, which leads to a single ramp (gradient 11%, width 118 cm, length 292 cm, double-sided handrail height 90 cm). Both lifts have doors on both sides, and the lift entrances are in the central corridors of the building.

Interior

The building has a square floor plan and central corridors around the perimeter of the 2nd to 5th above-ground floors connecting all four wings. Access to them from the modified entrance in the courtyard is provided by two lifts (see sections on Entrance and Lift). The doors of classrooms, study rooms and other rooms, including the cinema hall (5th above-ground floor) are mostly double-panel (main panel width 60 cm, secondary panel width 62 cm) with a threshold (height 2 cm to 3 cm). Other passageways have a minimum width of 80 cm. The manoeuvring area in the interior is sufficient.

On the elevated ground floor (1st above-ground floor), stairs (10 steps up) lead from the main wing (accessible from the courtyard by the façade lift) to both side wings. The right one (as seen from the main entrance into the building) has a sloping staircase platform (load capacity 225 kg, transport area width 90 cm, depth 115 cm). The manoeuvring areas on the lower and upper stair landings are sufficient. The platform can only be used with the assistance of staff. The elevated part of the floor (i.e. both side and rear wings) is also accessible directly by the second lift, to which a ramp leads from the courtyard (see Entrance section). The entrances to the rooms have double doors (main panel 60 cm wide, secondary panel 62 cm wide) with a threshold (height 2 cm to 3 cm). The bistro Mezi řádky on the lower part of the floor (main wing) has a single door (width 90 cm).

The library is located on the 2nd underground floor. It is accessible only by a third lift, which is located in the left part of the main wing (when looking from the main entrance into the building).

The large lecture halls were under reconstruction at the time the map was made (August 2019).

Lift

There are three lifts in the building.

The facade lift with doors on opposite sides (automatic doors width 90 cm; cabin width 129 cm, depth 171 cm) connects the lower ground floor (courtyard) to the 5th above-ground floor. The manoeuvring area in front of the lift is sufficient. The cabin with doors on both sides is equipped with a pull-down seat and a handrail on the side wall. There is no mirror in the cabin. The controls at the entrance points are a maximum height of 102 cm. The maximum height of the controls inside the cabin is 122 cm.

The second lift with doors on both sides in the rear wing (automatic doors width 90 cm; cabin width 173 cm, depth 128 cm) again connects the lower ground floor (courtyard) to the 5th above-ground floor. The manoeuvring area in front of the lift is sufficient. The cabin with doors on the opposite side is equipped with a pull-down seat, a mirror, and a handrail on the side wall. The controls at the entrance points are a maximum height of 110 cm. The maximum height of the controls inside the cabin is 123 cm.

The third lift (door only on one side) in the left part of the main wing (automatic door width 80 cm; cabin width 115 cm, depth 123 cm) connects the 2nd underground floor (library), the lower part of the elevated ground floor, and the 2nd to 5th above-ground floors. The manoeuvring area in front of the lift is sufficient. The cabin is equipped with a pull-down seat, a handrail, and a mirror on the front wall. The controls at the entrance points are a maximum height of 110 cm. The maximum height of the controls inside the cabin is 118 cm.

Sanitary facilities

There are a total of 10 modified toilets in the building on the opposite ends of the rear wing of all above-ground floors. They are all separated into women’s WC (on the right) and men’s WC (on the left). However, none of the toilets have optimal parameters. The doors to all stalls on the 3rd and 4th floors open towards the inside, which significantly restricts the manoeuvring area and safety. The stall on the 2nd floor in the women’s WC was out of order when making the map (August 2019).

The most convenient layout is the stall on the 5th above-ground floor in the women’s WC. The entrance door to the toilets is single-panel (width 80 cm) and opens mechanically towards the outside. The entry hall (width min. 98 cm, depth 596 cm) is further divided into two parts by another single door (width 80 cm). The partially accessible toilet (door width 78; stall width 248 cm, depth 167 cm) is located opposite the entrance door to the toilets. The single-panel door to the WC is labelled and opens mechanically towards the outside. Access to the toilet, anchored on the right side wall is on the right when looking from the entrance into the stall. The space for a wheelchair next to the toilet is sufficient (width 90 cm). The toilet is equipped with one pull-down handle and one fixed handle, but both are of inadequate length (length 61 cm). The stall is equipped with a changing table, which does not restrict the manoeuvring area.

The stall on the 5th above-ground floor in the men’s WC with similar dimensions has a mirror. The toilet is anchored to the wall on the left and access to the toilet when looking from the entrance into the cabin is from the right. The handles of the toilet are again of inadequate length. There is no changing table in the stall.

A partially accessible toilet (door width 76 – passage narrowed by a horizontal handle; stall width 263 cm, depth 172 cm) is also located in the women’s WC on the 1st above-ground floor. The single toilet door is labelled and opens mechanically towards the outside. Access to the toilet, anchored on the right side wall, is on the right when looking from the entrance to the cabin. The space for a wheelchair next to the toilet bowl is sufficient (width 112 cm). The toilet is equipped with two pull-down handles.

 The partially accessible toilets with the same parameters on the 1st and 2nd above-ground floors in the men’s WC (door width 70 – passage narrowed by horizontal handle; stall width 210 cm, depth 144 cm) have an unsuitable layout. The single door to the toilet stall on both floors is labelled and opens mechanically towards the outside. Access to the toilet, anchored to the wall next to the door, is on the right when looking from the entrance into the stall. The space for a wheelchair next to the toilet is sufficient (width 148 cm). The toilets are equipped with one pull-down handle and one fixed handle.

Parking

Reserved parking spaces are located at the intersection of Kaprova and Valentinská Streets (near the rear entrance). The adjacent pedestrian crosswalk has lowered curbs on both sides.

Public transportation

In the immediate vicinity of the building, there is the barrier-free tram stop Staroměstská, which is served by tram lines 1, 12, 17, 18, 25, and 93 and bus 194. The boarding islands have lowered curbs. Bus line 207 in the direction of Ohrada, which is served by low-floor buses, is located next to the building in the direction of the Faculty of Law. The deep underground Staroměstská metro station does not yet have a lift vestibule and therefore cannot be used. For more information, see www.dpp.cz.