Census data, released on Thursday (18) by IBGE, show an increase in the number of people with access to street lighting and sidewalks near their homes; However, accessibility and afforestation leaves something to be desired
Data from the 2022 Demographic Census, released on Thursday (17) by IBGE, show that Brazil has had significant advances in urban infrastructure in the last decade, but still faces inequalities and needs in areas such as road paving, accessibility and afforestation. In 2022, 88.5% of the population in urban areas – about 154.1 million people – lived on paved streets. Still, 19.5 million (11.2%) lived in places without any type of ground coverage, a number equivalent to the population of Minas Gerais. Direct comparison with the 2010 Census is limited by methodological changes, but the data reveals a scenario of persistent exclusion in some regions.
Public lighting was broader coverage: 97.5% of urban residents (169.7 million people) lived on roads with this type of infrastructure – a slight improvement compared to the 95.2% recorded in 2010. The presence of sidewalks reached 84% of the population (146.4 million), compared to 66.4% in 2010. However, only 18.8% of urban residents (32.8 million) lived on streets with streets with Obstacle -free sidewalks, and 15.2% (26.5 million) had access to wheelchair ramps. Despite the advance compared to 2010, when this percentage was only 3.9%, the numbers are still far from the universalization of accessibility.
Another relevant aspect is the presence of manholes or wolf mouths, essential for water flow and flood prevention. In 2022, 53.7% of the urban population (93.6 million) had this type of structure in their streets – a significant increase compared to the 39.3% registered in 2010. Even so, 80 million people still live in places without proper drainage. The survey also revealed that 66% of residents (114.9 million) were on wooded roads, while 58.7 million (33.7%) lived on streets without any tree. The survey does not allow comparison with the previous census due to the change in the criteria.
Regarding mobility, 90.8% of Brazilians in urban areas (158.1 million) lived on streets with capacity for trucks or buses. Another 6.1% were on roads that kept only cars or vans, and 2.9% (5 million) lived in stretches where pedestrians, bicycles or motorcycles were only possible.
The census also investigated the infrastructure around schools and health facilities. Most establishments had public lighting (almost 99%), but the presence of wheelchair ramps is still limited: only 47.2% of health posts and 31.8% of schools had this feature. Obstacle -free sidewalks were present in 49.5% of health facilities and only 41% of educationals.
Regional differences remain striking. In states such as Sao Paulo, Minas Gerais and Federal District, more than 94% of residents of urban areas live in paved streets. In states such as Pará, Amapá and Maranhão, less than 78% of the population have access to this type of infrastructure.
The survey considered about 341,000 census sectors with urban characteristics, including slums and traditional communities. In all, ten urban infrastructure questions were analyzed, such as paving, sidewalk, accessibility, afforestation and drainage, as well as specific items around public establishments.
*Report produced with the aid of AI
