Only Apple smartphones can run the BlindSquare software, limiting who can use it. In downtown St. John’s, a poster advertises the BlindSquare mobile app. A QR code on the poster allows people to download the iPhone app. The City of St. John’s and the CNIB have begun a pilot project to introduce BlindSquare, a navigation app designed to assist blind or partially sighted people in safely navigating the pedestrian mall. (CBC/Katie Breen)
The app uses GPS technology to show the location of things like businesses, curb cuts and public places. It also provides directions based on orientation and allows for personalized markers, allowing users to confidently navigate their way around the mall. The app is used in other provinces to help people access public transportation, parks, and more. Dwayne Morgan, vice-president of Atlantic Canada for CNIB and a user of the app himself, says it’s a game-changer for getting around the area.
The city of St. John’s is launching a pilot project to make the downtown pedestrian mall accessible to people who are blind or partially blind — but a disability justice advocate says the way the city has implemented the project is turning her and many others off . The city partnered with the Canadian National Institute for the Blind (CNIB) and Frontier Accessibility to launch BlindSquare, a navigation app that allows people with low vision or blindness to safely navigate the mall.
“Most importantly, it gives more independence to a person with vision loss. So it’s not necessarily somebody walking with me to give me all that information about what’s around me and where I’m at,” Morgan said Wednesday. “It gives me a lot of information that I wouldn’t necessarily be able to understand as I’m walking because I don’t see signs or other indicators.” A man walks along the path in downtown St. John’s. He is blind and walks with a white cane and a phone to give him directions.
“The city wants everyone to enjoy what we have, and we don’t want to exclude any part of the population,” Hanlon said Wednesday. “We’re trying to find other ways we can make it more inclusive because we want everyone to come down and enjoy, not just the pedestrian mall, we want everyone to enjoy the city.”
Dwayne Morgan is blind and manages to cross the downtown pedestrian mall with the help of BlindSquare. He says it’s a game changer for navigating the area. (Katie Breen/CBC) Morgan said CNIB will work with the city to do more testing and provide feedback on how the project works or where else it could be used. St. John Cone. Debbie Hanlon, the city’s accessibility manager, said the project has been two years in the works and it’s exciting to launch the app.
News summary:
- According to one advocate, the new accessibility software for the St. John excludes some people with vision problems.
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