Tonal contrast helps people with sight loss to navigate spaces and avoid collisions

Issue

Strong tonal contrast and their height makes the line of benches on Kingston Parade a navigational aid for people with sight loss, breaking up an otherwise featureless pedestrian space.

Street furniture that is over 1000mm high and has a strong tonal contrast with the surrounding paving is easier to detect for people with low vision reducing the chance of collisions.

Opportunity

Tonal contrast could be used to transmit useful navigational information to people with low vision elsewhere in Bath. This can include the colour and form of street furniture but also the boundary between carriageway and footway or the indication of level changes.