Moving through
Tactile paving
acera bus stop station public building campus
Paving with raised patterns that can be felt with the feet or a cane. Elongated bars guide the way and studs warn of a hazard or a change, such as a crossing or an edge.
What it solves
It allows blind or low-vision people to follow a route and know where to stop. Contrasting color also helps those who see little.
Today
Use few pieces and always with the same meaning, guidance in straight lines toward useful destinations and warnings only where there is a hazard. Give color contrast with the surrounding paving and keep the route clear of posts and tables.
Common mistake
Laying the paving as decoration, with guidance strips that end at a wall or a post.
Tomorrow
Connecting sidewalk guidance with that of stations, stops and buildings creates complete routes through the neighborhood. Doing it with the people who use them every day avoids confusing layouts.
Fact The British guidance distinguishes six types of tactile paving, each with a different message, such as crossing, hazard or platform edge.
Where it comes from
- 1Streets of Japan Okayama, Japan, 1967
The first raised paving, inspired by braille and designed two years earlier, was installed on a street. - 2Law 7600 Costa Rica, 1996
Its regulations require texture changes in the sidewalk near posts and obstacles and at the edges of platforms.
Appears in the routes
See also
Also in Moving through
Diagrams and texts by LDB Arquitectura. They are shared under the CC BY 4.0 license, which allows them to be used and adapted with credit to the source.