The Ultimate Guide to Designing and Navigating Spaces for People with Vision Impairment
Date Posted: January 13, 2022
Posted In: Ideas, News,
From BigRentz: Blindness, low vision, vision loss, and visually impaired are all terms commonly used in relation to people who cannot see well. According to the World Health Organization, approximately 1.3 billion people around the globe live with a vision impairment of some sort. To be considered legally blind, a person must have a central visual acuity of less than 20/200 in their best eye. In the United States, there are approximately 7.6 million people living with visual disability. That’s a large number of people with vision impairment who are endeavoring to navigate the world around them.
Today, those dealing with vision loss live increasingly independent lifestyles. They are out in the community, using their existing vision along with technology and assistance devices to maneuver alongside people with normal vision. For those designing and building public spaces, making those spaces easier to access and negotiate for people with vision concerns is an important consideration.
People with vision loss learn how to navigate a world designed for seeing people, and they use specific design elements, such as blistered pavers before crosswalks, to help. There are established international standards that help keep these signals and cues uniform around the globe, and designers should adhere to them as they work to create spaces that work for people with vision loss. In addition, many municipalities now require these standardized features, and in some cases, they are a national requirement under the Americans with Disabilities Act. Learning what to consider and include when designing a space can not only help you create spaces that all can use, but also will help you adhere to these important legal guidelines.
In order to design spaces that people with vision loss can navigate, you must understand how they navigate the world with limited vision. First, know that most people who are legally blind or deal with other vision conditions do have some degree of sight. They do rely partially on their sight, so some visual cues can be used. Second, people with vision loss use textures and audible signals to navigate the world, so increasing the use of these elements can help make a space easier to navigate.
Remember, vision loss is not always obvious. You will have people in your space who have vision loss but look and move just like people with normal vision. Accommodating their needs can make your space universally more inviting to all potential visitors, regardless of their ability to see well. As you plan the design for your space, remember to consider the needs of those dealing with vision loss.
This guide provides recommendations for design features for outdoor and indoor spaces, and long walkways, as well as special considerations for those who walk with canes or guide dogs, and those who have issues with colorblindness, depth perception, or scope-of-field. These recommendations can help you keep in mind the many ways you can assist those who have vision loss as they navigate your newly developed space.
Outdoor Spaces – Design Recommendations
Navigating the outdoors is a definite challenge for people who are visually impaired. Unlike their own homes, where they can control the environment, the outdoors are filled with challenges and constantly changing hazards. An overemphasis on shared spaces, roadways without clear barriers that are shared by motorists, pedestrians, and cyclists, in urban locations around the globe has increased this challenge and the risk to people with vision issues. Thankfully, modern technology and the use of canes or guide dogs make it possible for people with limited vision to maintain an active role in the community and get out to enjoy the outdoors, but those who design outdoor spaces need to strive to make it easier for them to navigate the world as well.
Increase Contrast
People with low vision often can rely on increased contrast to help them see where roadways and hazards are. Here are some areas where you can add contrast to improve the navigability of your outdoor space.
Use color contrasts to indicate a difference in function. For example, if you want to differentiate between a sidewalk and a curb, add a bright white or yellow line to the edge of the curb, which will differentiate it from the dark pavement.
Add colored contrast to the edge of steps. Someone with a visual impairment might struggle to discern the difference in depth at a stairway or step. Add a visual, high-contrast clue to the edge of the step to help.
Use illumination or lighting contrasts to help people see areas where their safety may be at risk. Augment illumination at crosswalks and similar areas for people who struggle to see well. Care should be taken to minimize glare while maximizing contrast.
Add illumination to the ground for contrast after dark. LED lights added to areas where contrasting colors are located will help those with vision impairment see the contrast even when the sun sets and the paint is no longer clearly visible.
Use contrasting textures, like bubble pavement, to indicate changes. In some areas, like crosswalks, texture changes are required to meet ADA requirements. In other areas, texture changes are simply a helpful signifier of terrain or traffic-feature changes.
Use tactile paving to indicate a change between areas designated for pedestrians, bikes, and other uses. The use of tactile paving does not need to be limited to crosswalks and bubble pavement. You can also add elongated ridges along walking paths to help people with low vision detect where they can safely walk. This can help users with vision impairments stay safe and avoid causing a hazard for those on bikes or motorbikes.