People with sensory impairment and mobility issues have special needs, however most public infrastructure and digital services are designed keeping only the general public in mind. Of course, many public buildings and transportation hubs do have facilities to enable easy movement of wheel chairs, and that is pretty much the limit of inclusive infrastructure design. In fact, prevailing design trends in architecture and digital technology create more impediments especially for people with vision impairment.
Take for example the foyer of an office block with tinted glass on one side and black marble walls on other sides. Such stylization prevents light from reflecting off the walls, and to add to the grievance the illumination is already on the dim side. A vision impaired person entering the foyer is at once halted by the gloom of the interiors, while other entrants walk past him without breaking step.
After several minutes of adjusting to the gloom, he is able to vaguely discern the silhouette of passer bys. Following the moving silhouette, he is able to approach the dark wall which is the elevator bank. And then, he stares intently at it for a minute or two, until he spots some luminescence somewhere along the wall. He walks towards it and then continues to stare at the patch opposite him. When he sees the patch brighten again he walks forth and enters the elevator.
Fortunately, there is always someone around in an ascending elevator, so a casual request ensures that the elevator will stop at the desired floor. But for now, he must frantically scan the interiors of the cabin until he sees the glowing digits which show the ascent of the elevator.
This example shows that when design is not aligned with the needs of people having sensory impairment or mobility issues, then simple tasks can seem very difficult to them. In the case of this particular example, increasing the illumination in the foyer and having light coloured walls instead of dark ones along with contrasting colour schemes for entry or exit points allow for easy movement of a vision impaired person. Similarly a bright elevator cabin with an operating panel that has large backlit numerals or signs on buttons, and a prominently placed high-contrast display screen, are some enhancements that enable a vision impaired person to use the elevator independently.
According to a March 2023 report of the World Health Organization, there are estimated 1.3 billion people who have significant disability. WHO’s data indicates that existing public infrastructure and digital services may not be suitable for about 16% of human population. As it is a lot easier for architects, interior designers and front end developers to cater to the needs of the 84% general population.
Side-lining the 16% of human population which has very special needs is unfair and therefore unacceptable. It undermines their aspirations and creates economic disparity. We believe that pursuit of happiness, aspirations and economic prosperity is the right of every individual. So, UBA strives to make public infrastructure and digital services convenient enough for independent use by people with all types of sensory impairments and mobility issues.
Through rampant pursuit of inconsiderate design, we have created a world that does not offer a level playing field to people with special needs. So now is the time for change, and the change begins with you. We want to create an active community that works towards transforming public infrastructure and digital services through inclusive design and planning. You can help by propagating our message, contributing ideas and through monetary funding. Visit UBA.org to learn how you can help in making the world better for all.