Accessible Pedestrian Signals: A Synthesis and Guide to Best Practice (Summary)

Author(s):

Barlow, Janet M., M.Ed., COMS; Bentzen, Billie Louise, Ph.D., COMS; Tabor, Lee S., AIA

Organization:

National Cooperative Highway Research Program, Transportation Research Board, National Research Council

Publisher/Date:

US Access Board (ATBCB), 2003

Rating:

Very Useful

Abstract:

This digest summarizes the publication Introduction to Accessible Pedestrian Signals: Synthesis and Guide to Best Practice, which is a 300-page book by the same authors. For many people, this summary may suffice: at the minimum, it allows readers to discover which specific chapters of the larger document would be most useful to them.

The digest has 8 major segments. While some segments may be of more interest to planners and advocates, and others of more interest to designers, the document is short enough to be read by all. The final segment is unusual in that it is directed to spec writers, the final stages of design, and even the mechanics doing the installation. Included is a very useful chart that lists eleven products with their attributes. While most useful to advocates and specification writers, it should also be on the shelf of designers and municipal transportation departments as a prime information source.

Annotation:

Accessible Pedestrian Signals presents much of the meat that is in the full document, but condenses the material to the extent that it is more accessible. For many people, therefore, this summary will contain the information they need. If they need more, they can go to the original. Some sections do suffer from brevity, particularly the segment on blindness. The multitude of types of visual impairment, the consequences of each, the coping mechanisms, and the way people navigate the environment are admirably summarized, but could be more detailed. It would have been valuable for the summary to have, in a condensed form, more of the material on pages 1-4 through 1-11 in the full document. More than anything, people need to understand the navigation processes people who are blind folks go through.

The segments most useful to planners and advocates are the second, third, fifth, and sixth segments -- the section on visual impairments, the section on regulations, the section on Audible Pedestrian Signals (APSs), and the section on where to install them. Designers will want to digest the second, fifth, and seventh through tenth segments -- the section on visual impairments, the section on APSs, and the sections on design.

The final segment has some information for mechanics in the field, an area in the development process not frequently covered by guidelines. However, this is brief; spec writers, working drawing designers, and mechanics doing installation should really go to Chapters 12 and 13 of the original document.

Unfortunately, the chapter of case studies and the chapter listing manufacturers and products are neither summarized nor mentioned. Consequently, readers aren’t clued into the fact that they can find this information in the full document.

This summary is just that: a summary. It is reviewed elsewhere in this study and is available on line at Accessible Pedestrian Signals (www.walkinginfo.org/aps).

Number of Pages:

31

Table of Contents?

No

Index?

No

Illustrations?

Yes (Photograph, Line Drawing Chart)

Material Type:

Monograph

Key Document?

Yes

Categories:

National Regulations, National Standards, Guidelines, Policy, Research, Materials and Products; Advocacy, Planning, Concept/Schematic Design, Design Development, Construction Documents, Construction ; Very Useful for Planners, Designers, Engineers, Spec Writers, Traffic Departments, Construction Supervisors

Keywords:

Pedestrian Signals, APS, Materials and Products

Strengths:

• Brief and comprehensible; a lot of information in a small package.
• As a summary, readers know that they can always go the original document.
• Has an excellent chart with products as the abscissa and functional characteristics as the ordinate.
• Establishes recommendations based on desired performance, and the rationale behind recommendations is usually given.

Weaknesses:

• The necessity of brevity sometimes results in the loss of information.
• Sparse in illustrations and pictures.

Suggestions for Future Editions:

• Expand the material on "blindness", the segment on design criteria, and include more material from chapters 12 and 13 of the original document.
• Include an abbreviated products catalogue and list of manufacturers.
• Add more pictures and graphics, especially in the design segment and the APS technologies and features segment.

Record Last Updated:

July 2006