Guidinglines for visually impaired
Client: npk industrial design
A new technique for applying guiding lines for visually impaired, based on epoxy and developed by TG Lining, enables new ways to apply guiding lines. NPK (Leiden), in cooperation with TG lining (Heiloo), designed and developed new solutions. But does it work in practice?
On an outdoor location in the Amsterdam region a test course with different marking solutions was applied on different kinds of pavement. Visually impaired were invited to participate in the test. The first task for each respondent was to explore the course without any instructions. Only when losing track they were assisted. After a longer pause the respondents were interviewed and asked to walk the course again.
The major advantage of the epoxy lining is that it is applicable on general pavement materials instead of having to replace parts of the pavement. After the test it was clear that the appearance of the paving stones, especially when they are small, strongly influences the recognition of the guiding lines. But regarding this, the solution works out well and gives more freedom for design of guidelines in public space.