Blind people have hard time with REV
Blind people are having trouble coping with crossing the REV, which adds an extra layer of difficulty to urban navigation for people who can’t see.
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Kate
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EmilyG 12:34 on 2021-05-30 Permalink
This is not just one of numerous examples of how Montreal is not a very disabled-friendly city, but also more generally an illustration of how disabled people are often not considered when plans are made.
Joey 17:00 on 2021-05-30 Permalink
This is the kind of thing you would expect a Projet Mtl administration to get right on the first try. I wonder how much of this kind of thing is due to an inadequate bureaucracy.
Kate 18:31 on 2021-05-30 Permalink
You’ll notice we’re not actually getting news about blind people being mowed down by cyclists.
Do blind people not have GPS on their phones by now, telling them where they are and warning of any particular hazards in the area? If not, I would think that’s the place to start. Clearly such a GPS-based aid would also have to be kept scrupulously updated.
Blork 18:41 on 2021-05-30 Permalink
It’s a legitimate concern. the article talks about major intersections where you have only 13 seconds to cross, and how the REV has lead to non-standard crossing patterns, which can come as a surprise and might be hard to parse if you can’t actually see what’s going on. The fact that no blind people have been mowed down yet is good, but that doesn’t mean it doesn’t need a re-think.
Joey 19:09 on 2021-05-30 Permalink
Would we hear about if if a blind person were knocked over by a cyclist? The issue seems to be the short/non-standard traffic signals, not the lack of GPS phones (huh?)… presumably audio cues integrated into the lights could relatively easily solve this and make the new St Denis more accessible.
Kate 19:43 on 2021-05-30 Permalink
Joey, you’re right, the traffic signals should have audio cues.
Sorry if you think my idea of GPS on phones is stupid. I was thinking about what I’d want if walking around town blindfolded and alone, and having the phone tell me things seemed like one solution.
mare 22:34 on 2021-05-30 Permalink
My father-in-law is getting blind and use apps like this that can recognize all kinds of things. Objects, light, barcodes, faces, money, handwritten text(!) and more. Still experimental but it already works amazingly well.
https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/ai/seeing-ai
I’m not sure it can handle the REV though.
qatzelok 14:40 on 2021-05-31 Permalink
I’m wondering if it was easier for anyone (including the seeing impaired) to cross four lanes of moving traffic with no mid-block crosswalks, or if saying that “the REV is hurting the blind” is just more car-addict nonsense.
jeather 16:29 on 2021-05-31 Permalink
Did you read the article? Because it happens to answer your questions.
qatzelok 09:14 on 2021-06-01 Permalink
Yes I read it, and no it doesn’t, jeather.
jeather 14:51 on 2021-06-01 Permalink
Really, because I read quotes from a blind person who says that it was easier when they had the sound of traffic to guide them, that they would like audible walk signals (very common elsewhere), and that they like the bike lane and think it is better for cyclists but wish they were included in the planning. This isn’t a validated survey of all blind people, granted.
Orr 21:29 on 2021-06-01 Permalink
Wait until they hear the news about these new silent electric cars driving all around town.