Sustrans and the Assistive Technologies Innovation Centre (ATiC) have revealed details of a project which could change engagement for people with visual impairments.
The venture explored a range of manufacturing technologies, including 3D printing, to develop tactile maps which enabled people with visual impairments to experience and feedback on suggested urban design plans.
The pilot study was made possible through the £24m Accelerate Wales programme, led by Life Sciences Hub Wales, and co-funded by the European Regional Development Fund through Welsh Government.
The three-month study involved people with visual impairments from the outset, with members of Vision Impaired West Glamorgan evaluating tactile maps, including 3D-printed maps, of different active travel designs.
These maps were made using different manufacturing processes to identify how best to communicate urban design features to people with visual impairments.
One of the aims of the research was also to engage people with visual impairments to develop a better understanding of active travel plans that would affect them the most.
Andrea Gordon, Chair of Vision Impaired West Glamorgan, said: “Vision impaired people are often prevented from contributing to the development of active travel routes because plans are not provided in accessible formats.
“The Equality Act 2010 requires local authorities to engage with disabled residents, but we need to find an easier way to explain proposals.
“The design of our streets and the built environment has a huge impact on the safety and independence of vision impaired people, so active travel can make getting out and about much easier, or much harder.
“Tactile maps can be part of the solution when active travel routes are designed with inclusion in mind from the start.”
Ryland Jones, Head of Connected Communities at Sustrans Cymru, said: “There are over 110,000 people in Wales who live with some kind of visual impairment.
“To ensure people with visual impairments can fully engage with new design proposals, which are truly fit-for-purpose, printed 3D models can offer an interactive medium for people to interpret through touch.
“This means that those who are the most affected by urban design decisions can now have an immediate experience of what’s being suggested.”
