The liveability of a city like Rome is endangered by vehicular traffic and, as consequence, urban spaces are generally not accessible to all users; this is a problem that is particularly felt in residential districts. The Department of Architecture of Roma Tre University has recently moved to Testaccio, a historical, famous, working class district of the city, where Piattaforma Testaccio, an association of dwellers, is very active. A collaboration started between this association and University, with the aim to improve the urban environment where dwellers, teachers and students spend their everyday life. A study, involving academic staff and students of the course "City and Environment" together with some members of the association, was run with the aim of solving one of the most important problems highlighted by the association: the accessibility of public spaces. To this aim, it was used a prescriptive tool: "the Environmental Island" that can be applied in areas that are mainly residential. Special methodologies, already tested in some European funded research, were applied to assess the level of accessibility of pavements, crossings and bus stops, the quantity of public space available to pedestrian and its fruition, the density and the continuity of the pedestrian network. Such assessment considers the exigencies of different categories of PRM (people with reduced mobility) as defined by the European Parliament, considering not only mobility or sight impaired people but also people affected by temporary problems. Solutions were proposed to create inclusive and accessible urban environments, considering also facilities to make easier and more comfortable walking and moving around, to facilitate orientation and the use of public services and without overlooking safety. The next step of the process concerns a meeting with the Association members for the presentation of the identified solutions and for their evaluation by the dwellers.
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