Karlsruhe Barrier-free: A web app for everyone
Karlsruhe has more barrier-free places than most people realize. Arthur Budnik has set himself the task of making precisely this visible. Anyone looking for a barrier-free place in Karlsruhe will find it even easier since the fall relaunch. Behind the project Karlsruhe barrier-free is Arthur Budnik, who has held the project position of the same name at the social and youth services since June 2025. We spoke to him about the web app, founding a community and the importance of accessibility.
What the web app can do
When you open the platform, you land on a landing page with four clearly structured entry points: Overview map, nearby locations, live information and a text-based version for screen readers. The home page can be navigated directly by address or location.
The live information is particularly noteworthy: The app shows in real time whether elevators are in operation – specifically the 22 elevators in the KVV light rail tunnel in Karlsruhe and the Deutsche Bahn elevators at the main station. Free or out of service – recognizable at a glance by green and red symbols. In addition, selected disabled parking spaces in the city center are linked to sensors that display their occupancy in real time: green (free), red (occupied), orange (partially occupied).
“I think the live information is one of the most interesting functions,” says Arthur. “These are things that don’t just affect people with a disability, but everyone in the city who uses an elevator.”
If you are somewhere in the city and want to know what is accessible in the area, you can use the “Places near you” function: Simply set a radius – for example 500 meters – and a list of all accessible places in the vicinity will appear. The map can also be filtered by district, category and specific accessibility features – whether it’s a café, restaurant, public office or sports hall.
From database to living platform
Back in 2014, the local council decided to set up a database of accessible places in Karlsruhe. In 2016, the first questionnaires were digitized – and “Karlsruhe Barrier-free” was born. An important cooperation with Sozialhelden e.V. from Berlin followed in 2021 and the first major revision of the app in 2023. Since then, the platform has mainly been known in specialist circles. This is now set to change fundamentally.
Since June 2025, the project has been officially classified as a future project of the city of Karlsruhe. In September 2025, a completely redesigned version of the web app was published – with optimized user-friendliness for mobile and desktop devices and a new landing page as an entry point. An advisory board made up of representatives from the administration as well as civil society and business partners also held its first meeting in October 2025.
“The aim is to really make them known to the masses – that’s the mission I have,” explains Arthur. Over 511 accessible places are currently listed and the map is growing continuously. The more people help to provide the web app with information and enter accessible places, the easier the web app will make everyday life for all users. So it’s worth joining in.
Of course, people with disabilities can benefit, but so can families with baby carriages, people with heavy luggage, senior citizens and neurodivergent people who are looking for quiet or evenly lit rooms.
How the web app also became accessible
The decision to use a web app was a conscious one and, from Arthur’s point of view, clearly the right one:
“With the web app, I can simply send someone a QR code or a link – and they’re in. Registering in the app store, downloading it, finding the functionality – that’s a big hurdle for many people.” This is a decisive advantage, especially for older people or people with cognitive impairments.
The web app not only provides information, but is also accessible as a product. A conscious decision was made to program it as a browser version rather than a mobile app, because “With the web app, I can simply send someone a QR code or a link – and they’re in. Logging into the app store, downloading it, finding the functionality – that’s a big hurdle for many people,” explains Budnik. This is a decisive advantage, especially for older people or people with cognitive impairments.
In addition, there is a text version of all functions that can be easily read by screen readers – and thus enables people with visual impairments to use it.
Karlsruhe Barrier-free at the Hack Days
Of particular interest to karlsruhe.digital: Arthur is planning to take part in a workshop at the Karlsruhe Hack Days. There will not only be theory, but real experience: “So that you can experience what accessibility is on site, so to speak. I’ll have 1.5 hours to do this and then demonstrate live what barriers can look like and what accessibility means. I also think it’s cool to go from the virtual to the real!”
It needs a village, or a city like Karlsruhe
An important next step is the founding of the Karlsruhe Barrier-Free team on March 13. The aim is to enable more people throughout the city to add barrier-free places to the database themselves.
“If you see an accessible church anywhere in Oberreuth, you can record it. Do you see that a savings bank or a store is accessible? Then you can record that. That’s how we’re trying to go the extra mile.”
The aim now is to work together to increase the radius in which accessible places are shown on the overview map. The city center is already well mapped, but to give even more people an advantage through the app, we need people to report places that are accessible via their districts.
The situation in Karlsruhe? Better than expected.
Finally, we asked Arthur how he generally assesses the accessibility situation in Karlsruhe. His answer was positive – and at the same time a challenge to us all: “I would say the situation is good – and above all, it’s better than you think. There are many more accessible places than we all realize. And that is precisely the goal: to make these places accessible to people.”
There are still places available for the kick-off session (including training). If you would like to take part, please contact us by e-mail: mobilitaet.srb@karlsruhe.de
The web app can be accessed directly at: geoportal.karlsruhe.de/karlsruhe_barrier-free
More information on the history of the project and how to register for the community team can be found on the official website of the city of Karlsruhe.