Thank you Ben! We do already have a video about getting about on the tube, but we will also be covering these important issues more. ruclips.net/video/rGGL89KU70s/видео.html
This is so important to take into account while planning roads/pavements etc. But I must say that I was really stressed out for Mr Huddy at the end of the video, when by chance he didn't step into the dog poo. OhMyGosh! Please dog owners, tidy up after your animal!!!!
Seeing Hugh interacting with his urban environment is far more helpful in getting us to understand the situations blind people find themselves in than having self important social activist types waging their fingers at us. Thanks for making this video. :)
@@janicew9 It's more that I tend to tune out when superior people from places like Islington lecture us common folk on what should concern us and how we should live. But seeing an otherwise ordinary bloke like Hugh have difficulties with things we never noticed is far more effective in helping us to empathise and understand his concerns.
@@Dave_Sisson To an extent, I understand and agree. It's so important to have actual disabled people tell their own stories. That said, a lot of those "superior people" are genuinely trying to do good in the world and it's worth listening to these issues even when they're not told as well as they should be. Not every disabled person's experience has the advantage of a platform... even if those *with* platforms should share the stage. (Some do, luckily.) Plus, social activism isn't a bad thing, no matter what internet buzzwords may have you believe. Social justice is worth fighting for and, as a disabled person, it's really come in handy for me, just as its frequent absence has caused me much strife. It's easy to identify all such activists as part of this overarching ivory tower elitist crowd, and that small crowd does exist, but most really *aren't* in my personal (admittedly a little biased) experience.
@@clockworkkirlia7475 Well looking back a few months, I think I meant that the self importance and seemingly arrogant self belief of those comfortably off social activists tends to make more ordinary people roll their eyes. Their activism appears to be based from tastefully renovated terrace houses in fashionable suburbs rather than from any experience of actually living with the issues. A bit like the girl in Pulp's 'Common People' briefly slumming it, before going back to her own environment. But in this video people see someone we can identify with dealing with real problems rather than a cashed up hipster lecturing us tragically unfashionable people on why we should be concerned.
Thanks for this. As someone who is legally blind, I can tell you that London is far more accessible than most places but it far from perfect. One of my biggest gripes is that it's difficult to spot when there's a step if they haven't got anything tactile at the top. I've often come close to falling over steps on my may way from Waterloo to jubilee gardens.
This is something that a lot of people wouldn't even think about, but it's so important. I think that most might just assume that a cane will spot it, but I'm guessing (as a sighted person who thinks about accessibility a lot) that the angles don't actually work out for that happening at speed. I hope that they implement the tactile paving; that sounds terribly disconcerting. I know from experience that councils tend not to listen to the experts here, e.g. disabled people, but hopefully that is changing!
This is really fascinating, and extremely important. I'd love to see more on accessibility; I've just loaded up the tube video in another tab. As an autistic person, the idea of not knowing one's surroundings really *really* hit home; up until recently, the feeling of being lost was one of *complete* worldly displacement because I rely so much on visual cues to feel safe. I can't imagine having the absence of that as a fact of life, and I feel like that's something that's rarely brought up.
I live along the A40, I’m a disabled cyclist. And they’ve just added a small little bump along the new cycle path at gypsy corner. It’s taken years just to get that ‘smart’ idea into the paths. I hope they get them all sorted soon.
Consideration of design is one thing but consideration by people is just as important in that the cyclist could ring his bell, the bikes could be stowed more appropriately and dog poo should be cleaned up. Consideration for others isn't just for the planners but for everyone.
Agreed, though there is a system for marking bike trails for the blind and/or partially sighted that *is* effective, and there's no excuse for a council not to implement it. People aren't educated as much as they should be on disability, but I agree that there's a basic level of consideration that should be adhered to as well. (This is a good video if you're interested in those unseen markers: ruclips.net/video/cdPymLgfXSY/видео.html) Of course, it should be taken into account that a fast-moving white cane might not be visible to a cyclist who has to keep account of every pedestrian in the area; ringing the bell for everyone might end up as useless white noise. It's a tricky situation and council planners have the power to alleviate that with relatively simple implementation, a little common sense, and getting disabled people in on the process.
Thank you - a really helpful video, particularly how Hugh picks up multiple cues, with cane, hands, feet and ears. There are often conflicting priorities in footway and crossing design, so it is useful to get the inside track on some of the issues, without having to do a guided blindfold walk to find out.
I am a wheelchair user and am weary of finding dockless bikes blocking my way. On some occasions I've reported them to the borough council as dumped litter out of sheer frustration. Even if the user leaves the bike standing up in a sensible place, they often get knocked over and finish up lying across the pavement. At times I've had to ram a dockless bike with my chair to get it out of the way. I hate damaging anything, especially my chair, but what am I supposed to do? I seem to have most dockless bike encounters in Camden, but that is perhaps more to do with where I go in London than anything else.
Once again brilliant video Londonist. People with visual impairment and blindness can be very hard and also at risk danger. And they are vulnerable to everything including people, vehicles, objects and so on. But great video.
I think the paving with bumps on the road and various other markings are not bright enough for the hard of sight either. In Japan, the yellow paving etc is almost fluorescent it's so bright. Sure it might not fit into the surrounding aesthetic but it's important we keep people safe.
Thank you for this. I'm curious about the best way to solve the level surface problem moving from pavement to road. Generally I think these are a good idea (why should a child, dad, senior citizen, wheelchair user or someone with shopping have to negotiate a drop to the vehicle level and not the other way round?), but they've created an unintended negative consequence here. What can we do?
What can we do? Use proper dropped kerbs. Wheelchair users, children and senior citizens can negotiate dropped kerbs. Blind people can't work with level transitions. Dropped kerbs can't be too steep, but by the same token they cannot be non-existent either.
@@davidpnewton Well, I'm a bit more radical. The perfect solution would be a level surface, but the pedestrian has right of way. I don't understand why those mentioned should negotiate a drop, while the vehicle with pneumatic tires and suspension should have a level surface. These raised junctions are designed to slow the traffic down, so let's go the whole hog and do it properly.
Nearest thing to that is the shared spaces concept. That has been utterly disastrous for the blind. Now it does differ in that no one has priority in that sort of area, but it is lethal to the blind. How do they tell when they are going from pavement to road? It's this problem writ large. As for the suggestion that pedestrians get priority, well that already exists and it's called a pedestrianised area. It simply won't work outside of main shopping areas. Why? It will utterly clog up traffic because traffic will be forced to go so slowly that they can stop if any pedestrian takes advantage of their "priority" and just steps out into the road. Also this doesn't take notice of bicycle users who have the worst compliance rate with traffic rules of any major class of road users. One way street? Let's go the wrong way up it! Two way street? Let's cycle on the wrong side of it! Traffic lights? What are they for? Lights at night? Oh do they help me see and be seen? Pavement? Isn't that just part of the road? Some cyclists obey the rules of the road, but they are a minority unfortunately. Cyclists are a lethal hazard for the blind.
@@davidpnewton Gosh, you suddenly go off on rather a stringent anti-cycling tangent here David. The evidence happily does not back up your wild claim. On the core issue here, there must be a compromise. I'm not calling for shared spaces, I'm calling for safe crossing for all road users at junctions. And clear tactile separation for those with impaired vision. I think we agree there.
What a great video I use a cane and fully agree. It’s not only bikes on pavements but also shop fronts that spill onto the street and other billboards etc. Also cars and vans parked on pavements. In London tfl are great for the VIP but in Devon where I live it needs a lot more to be done
London busses and tubes trains all talk, wish they did that here. When I visited japan I found their tactile paving to be very helpful and it was almost everywhere! Wish the UK would do the same. As far as the shared surfaces go (no defining line between pavement and road) there should be a tactile marking of a safe walkway like they have in japan. If you stay in the walkway then you are not on the road.
Watching this makes me want to contribute to Hugh and all the other visually impaired people's cause. Does anyone have suggestions on ways to aid change in the future?
The charity Hugh works for is RNIB (Royal National Institute for the Blind). They do work all over the country to help the visually impaired live more ordinary lives. You can either donate some much needed money or volunteer your time and energy, either will be gratefully received.
In addition to directly supporting the RNIB as @pintpullinggeek suggests, you could watch out for inaccessible design in your local area. That bike path in front of the bus stop (without any tactile marking) is an excellent example, as are stairs with unmarked tops (canes don't always detect the drop in elevation right away). Let the local council know whenever you notice something like that; the more people who complain, the more likely the bigwigs are to implement change. If you want to know what *should* be there, here's a nice video to start up some research: ruclips.net/video/cdPymLgfXSY/видео.html
The crossing the cycle lane to get to the bus stop is hard even for sighted people. I can understand why it was done (sort of) but it is a stupid idea. Hugh would hate some of the roads in the Netherlands you have pavement, cycle path (with scooters), two lanes of road, two tram lines, two more lanes of road, another cycle path (also with scooters) and finally back onto the pavement. It's like a giant game of Frogger.
Yeah those were considered with accessibility in mind. While it is a very important concern, it's not the only concern - many other things needed to be balanced with it. The scooters are idneed a problem but the ones that are allowed on the cycle lanes can only go up to 25mph. Thus they are very easy to navigate. I'd suggest you look up the channel "BicycleDutch" - he gives very good overviews of the designs of Dutch streets (with lots of footage) and how they are some of the best in the world.
Always thought the cycle lanes down Carlton Lane in Queens Park is badly designed and there for lip service. Never realised the effect it has on blind people though as its another thats just a flat cycle lane going between a bus stop and footpath. Good video.
Would be great to get input from a blind person: I was waiting on the platform and noticed a blind person with a cone going about their life, coming to the station but missing the yellow line (you can feel it) and heading dangerously close to the edge. I told them they are too close to the edge and was shot at to mind my own business. Does it depend on the personality or trying to be helpful is disrespectful in some way?
As a disabled person: 1) disabled people are all different, some are arseholes 2) sometimes help can be offered or forced on us in ways that aren't that helpful. I'm not suggesting you did that, I wasn't there, but it does happen I'm personally always grateful for offers of help, even when I don't need or accept it
As someone who is visually impaired: from how you describe the situation you were right to say something, and even though the reaction was negative I would encourage you to speak out again if a similar situation occurs. Maybe the person was using other context cues to navigate and didn't need help, perhaps they were having a bad day, perhaps realising they might have been in danger made them feel fearful which led to an outburst. My friend once pulled a sighted woman out of the road when she stepped in front of a bus without looking, and her reaction was "get your hands off me!". It can be discouraging, but if you genuinely believe someone (disabled or not) is putting themself (or others) in harm's way it's always best to speak out even if they might get grumpy at you.
wertw120 maybe that person uses this station each day and knows everything, so it could have been little annoying. everyone can be rude, disabled or not, don't think much about it.
There's not much I can say that hasn't been said since I'm not visually impaired but, as a disabled person, I would be mindful of tone; some of us deal with a lot of unsolicited 'help' that can make us a little snappy with those who are genuinely being thoughtful. That said, you obviously gotta be quick in that sort of situation so don't worry too much about politeness; If you were accidentally rude (or taken that way), a simple "oh, sorry" should cover your bases. Personally, I'd try to say the same to anyone I saw messing about too near the track, regardless of ability, since getting snapped at is far better than someone falling in. That said, I'm the sort of person who plans for every random interaction I can think of, so I might not be a stellar example. Probably just do what you believe to be the right thing, and deal with the consequences as they come.
I'm also aware of the importance of kerbs for people who are blind - I spoke to one such person who I used to work next to. Also, there's a fine balance between the needs of people who are blind and people using wheelchairs who like flat surfaces. Junctions should not be over complicated either - perhaps Dutch style junctions with raised elliptical islands for pedestrian use (all crossings are perpendicular) - good wide corners for pedestrians and motorists (for access and legitimate journeys for which motor vehicles are required), but no traffic slips required (proper turning lanes instead) as the pedestrians circumnavigate the junction. Just omit the cycling aspect and you have a junction that is straight forward and fit for purpose for both pedestrians (including the above mentioned) and motor traffic. Bicycles are not efficient (just look at the clogged streets in the Netherlands, the space taken up and the expensive parking lots required). Trams (very space efficient) should take the place of cars and bikes for travel within larger towns and cities - trams need no dwell time in city/town centres. Also, walking should be encouraged a lot more - an efficient and proper load bearing form of exercise!
I may not totally agree with your points on bikes, but this is a really interesting and well thought-through comment. Not everyone can rely on public transport (autistic'*' people come to mind), and cars are a huge problem for British cities, but I certainly think that we should rely on public transport more as a society. Mind you, I'm biased and lucky. I'm a Scot with a disability card, so I can get anywhere in this country by bus for free (given sufficient time and energy). It's not a perfect trade-off for not driving and I do have sensory processing issues that make buses problematic at times, but I'm not often well enough to cycle so it's ultimately quite a nice situation. Well, when there's not a global pandemic, at least. But that can't be helped. :P Have you seen Jay Foreman's videos on bicycles/public transport in London? It's a two-parter and it's quite interesting and really funny. Here's part one: ruclips.net/video/gohSeOYheXg/видео.html '*' Also immune-compromised people, I'd guess, but that's not my experience and I don't want to use someone else's condition (that I don't know enough about) as some thoughtless point in a discussion. Too much of that going around. That said, I do feel it important to mention just because I reckon it's an issue most won't have thought of.
Definitely something that should be tackled through education for cyclists and drivers, as well as through tactile paving at elevation changes, road transitions and cycle paths.
Because not all visually impaired people are the same, it varies. Having worked with someone who has a visual impairment for 20 years it's amazing how much you learn.
Vision impairment isn't just being totally "blind" - it comes in all sorts of forms, some people may still be able to see or read in certain circumstances and may have glasses for other reasons.
Well done Londonist! You are bringing light to a subject people never consider. Would be great to see you do a video on transport accessibility.
Thank you Ben! We do already have a video about getting about on the tube, but we will also be covering these important issues more. ruclips.net/video/rGGL89KU70s/видео.html
This is so important to take into account while planning roads/pavements etc.
But I must say that I was really stressed out for Mr Huddy at the end of the video, when by chance he didn't step into the dog poo.
OhMyGosh! Please dog owners, tidy up after your animal!!!!
Really interesting video. There's so much we sighted people just don't even think about in out environment. Thanks.
Seeing Hugh interacting with his urban environment is far more helpful in getting us to understand the situations blind people find themselves in than having self important social activist types waging their fingers at us. Thanks for making this video. :)
Sounds like you just haven't been listening
@@janicew9 It's more that I tend to tune out when superior people from places like Islington lecture us common folk on what should concern us and how we should live. But seeing an otherwise ordinary bloke like Hugh have difficulties with things we never noticed is far more effective in helping us to empathise and understand his concerns.
@@Dave_Sisson To an extent, I understand and agree. It's so important to have actual disabled people tell their own stories. That said, a lot of those "superior people" are genuinely trying to do good in the world and it's worth listening to these issues even when they're not told as well as they should be. Not every disabled person's experience has the advantage of a platform... even if those *with* platforms should share the stage. (Some do, luckily.)
Plus, social activism isn't a bad thing, no matter what internet buzzwords may have you believe. Social justice is worth fighting for and, as a disabled person, it's really come in handy for me, just as its frequent absence has caused me much strife. It's easy to identify all such activists as part of this overarching ivory tower elitist crowd, and that small crowd does exist, but most really *aren't* in my personal (admittedly a little biased) experience.
@@clockworkkirlia7475 Well looking back a few months, I think I meant that the self importance and seemingly arrogant self belief of those comfortably off social activists tends to make more ordinary people roll their eyes. Their activism appears to be based from tastefully renovated terrace houses in fashionable suburbs rather than from any experience of actually living with the issues. A bit like the girl in Pulp's 'Common People' briefly slumming it, before going back to her own environment. But in this video people see someone we can identify with dealing with real problems rather than a cashed up hipster lecturing us tragically unfashionable people on why we should be concerned.
Thanks for this. As someone who is legally blind, I can tell you that London is far more accessible than most places but it far from perfect.
One of my biggest gripes is that it's difficult to spot when there's a step if they haven't got anything tactile at the top. I've often come close to falling over steps on my may way from Waterloo to jubilee gardens.
This is something that a lot of people wouldn't even think about, but it's so important. I think that most might just assume that a cane will spot it, but I'm guessing (as a sighted person who thinks about accessibility a lot) that the angles don't actually work out for that happening at speed.
I hope that they implement the tactile paving; that sounds terribly disconcerting. I know from experience that councils tend not to listen to the experts here, e.g. disabled people, but hopefully that is changing!
Hey mate, how can someone with low vision and being a student find job in London
This is really fascinating, and extremely important. I'd love to see more on accessibility; I've just loaded up the tube video in another tab. As an autistic person, the idea of not knowing one's surroundings really *really* hit home; up until recently, the feeling of being lost was one of *complete* worldly displacement because I rely so much on visual cues to feel safe. I can't imagine having the absence of that as a fact of life, and I feel like that's something that's rarely brought up.
I live along the A40, I’m a disabled cyclist. And they’ve just added a small little bump along the new cycle path at gypsy corner.
It’s taken years just to get that ‘smart’ idea into the paths. I hope they get them all sorted soon.
Fantastic - well done! Such sensible advice to urban planners and all of us out there.
Consideration of design is one thing but consideration by people is just as important in that the cyclist could ring his bell, the bikes could be stowed more appropriately and dog poo should be cleaned up. Consideration for others isn't just for the planners but for everyone.
Agreed, though there is a system for marking bike trails for the blind and/or partially sighted that *is* effective, and there's no excuse for a council not to implement it. People aren't educated as much as they should be on disability, but I agree that there's a basic level of consideration that should be adhered to as well.
(This is a good video if you're interested in those unseen markers: ruclips.net/video/cdPymLgfXSY/видео.html)
Of course, it should be taken into account that a fast-moving white cane might not be visible to a cyclist who has to keep account of every pedestrian in the area; ringing the bell for everyone might end up as useless white noise. It's a tricky situation and council planners have the power to alleviate that with relatively simple implementation, a little common sense, and getting disabled people in on the process.
The cyclist could be ringing his bell all the time by this logic. He could not have seen there was a blond person over the person with the camera
Thank you - a really helpful video, particularly how Hugh picks up multiple cues, with cane, hands, feet and ears.
There are often conflicting priorities in footway and crossing design, so it is useful to get the inside track on some of the issues, without having to do a guided blindfold walk to find out.
Dockless bikes are just litter!
I am a wheelchair user and am weary of finding dockless bikes blocking my way. On some occasions I've reported them to the borough council as dumped litter out of sheer frustration. Even if the user leaves the bike standing up in a sensible place, they often get knocked over and finish up lying across the pavement.
At times I've had to ram a dockless bike with my chair to get it out of the way. I hate damaging anything, especially my chair, but what am I supposed to do?
I seem to have most dockless bike encounters in Camden, but that is perhaps more to do with where I go in London than anything else.
Well Done, this should win a Streamy Award! I would like to see a follow up with solutions to the challenges that the visually impaired face.
Once again brilliant video Londonist. People with visual impairment and blindness can be very hard and also at risk danger. And they are vulnerable to everything including people, vehicles, objects and so on. But great video.
I think the paving with bumps on the road and various other markings are not bright enough for the hard of sight either. In Japan, the yellow paving etc is almost fluorescent it's so bright. Sure it might not fit into the surrounding aesthetic but it's important we keep people safe.
Excellent film, very informative
Thank you for this. I'm curious about the best way to solve the level surface problem moving from pavement to road. Generally I think these are a good idea (why should a child, dad, senior citizen, wheelchair user or someone with shopping have to negotiate a drop to the vehicle level and not the other way round?), but they've created an unintended negative consequence here. What can we do?
wider tactile strip?
What can we do? Use proper dropped kerbs. Wheelchair users, children and senior citizens can negotiate dropped kerbs. Blind people can't work with level transitions. Dropped kerbs can't be too steep, but by the same token they cannot be non-existent either.
@@davidpnewton Well, I'm a bit more radical. The perfect solution would be a level surface, but the pedestrian has right of way. I don't understand why those mentioned should negotiate a drop, while the vehicle with pneumatic tires and suspension should have a level surface. These raised junctions are designed to slow the traffic down, so let's go the whole hog and do it properly.
Nearest thing to that is the shared spaces concept. That has been utterly disastrous for the blind. Now it does differ in that no one has priority in that sort of area, but it is lethal to the blind. How do they tell when they are going from pavement to road? It's this problem writ large.
As for the suggestion that pedestrians get priority, well that already exists and it's called a pedestrianised area. It simply won't work outside of main shopping areas. Why? It will utterly clog up traffic because traffic will be forced to go so slowly that they can stop if any pedestrian takes advantage of their "priority" and just steps out into the road. Also this doesn't take notice of bicycle users who have the worst compliance rate with traffic rules of any major class of road users. One way street? Let's go the wrong way up it! Two way street? Let's cycle on the wrong side of it! Traffic lights? What are they for? Lights at night? Oh do they help me see and be seen? Pavement? Isn't that just part of the road? Some cyclists obey the rules of the road, but they are a minority unfortunately. Cyclists are a lethal hazard for the blind.
@@davidpnewton Gosh, you suddenly go off on rather a stringent anti-cycling tangent here David. The evidence happily does not back up your wild claim.
On the core issue here, there must be a compromise. I'm not calling for shared spaces, I'm calling for safe crossing for all road users at junctions. And clear tactile separation for those with impaired vision. I think we agree there.
Very thought-provoking video!
What a great video
I use a cane and fully agree. It’s not only bikes on pavements but also shop fronts that spill onto the street and other billboards etc. Also cars and vans parked on pavements.
In London tfl are great for the VIP but in Devon where I live it needs a lot more to be done
Tactile pavements are literally TAC TILES!!!!!
Ahaha, nice pun! It comes from a Latin word meaning "to touch". From the same root, in fact, you could call it a tactful tile!
London busses and tubes trains all talk, wish they did that here. When I visited japan I found their tactile paving to be very helpful and it was almost everywhere! Wish the UK would do the same.
As far as the shared surfaces go (no defining line between pavement and road) there should be a tactile marking of a safe walkway like they have in japan. If you stay in the walkway then you are not on the road.
They should do this to every major city.
Love you 😘❤️
Well done LL ~
Watching this makes me want to contribute to Hugh and all the other visually impaired people's cause. Does anyone have suggestions on ways to aid change in the future?
The charity Hugh works for is RNIB (Royal National Institute for the Blind). They do work all over the country to help the visually impaired live more ordinary lives. You can either donate some much needed money or volunteer your time and energy, either will be gratefully received.
In addition to directly supporting the RNIB as @pintpullinggeek suggests, you could watch out for inaccessible design in your local area. That bike path in front of the bus stop (without any tactile marking) is an excellent example, as are stairs with unmarked tops (canes don't always detect the drop in elevation right away). Let the local council know whenever you notice something like that; the more people who complain, the more likely the bigwigs are to implement change.
If you want to know what *should* be there, here's a nice video to start up some research: ruclips.net/video/cdPymLgfXSY/видео.html
Thanks both!
The crossing the cycle lane to get to the bus stop is hard even for sighted people. I can understand why it was done (sort of) but it is a stupid idea. Hugh would hate some of the roads in the Netherlands you have pavement, cycle path (with scooters), two lanes of road, two tram lines, two more lanes of road, another cycle path (also with scooters) and finally back onto the pavement. It's like a giant game of Frogger.
Yes, thats a stupid design.
Yeah those were considered with accessibility in mind. While it is a very important concern, it's not the only concern - many other things needed to be balanced with it. The scooters are idneed a problem but the ones that are allowed on the cycle lanes can only go up to 25mph. Thus they are very easy to navigate. I'd suggest you look up the channel "BicycleDutch" - he gives very good overviews of the designs of Dutch streets (with lots of footage) and how they are some of the best in the world.
@@eshansingh1 Yes, if you aren't crossing the road in Amstelveen!
Brilliant video, you should do more on disability access with different people with different disabilities.
Always thought the cycle lanes down Carlton Lane in Queens Park is badly designed and there for lip service. Never realised the effect it has on blind people though as its another thats just a flat cycle lane going between a bus stop and footpath. Good video.
Would be great to get input from a blind person: I was waiting on the platform and noticed a blind person with a cone going about their life, coming to the station but missing the yellow line (you can feel it) and heading dangerously close to the edge. I told them they are too close to the edge and was shot at to mind my own business. Does it depend on the personality or trying to be helpful is disrespectful in some way?
As a disabled person:
1) disabled people are all different, some are arseholes
2) sometimes help can be offered or forced on us in ways that aren't that helpful. I'm not suggesting you did that, I wasn't there, but it does happen
I'm personally always grateful for offers of help, even when I don't need or accept it
As someone who is visually impaired: from how you describe the situation you were right to say something, and even though the reaction was negative I would encourage you to speak out again if a similar situation occurs. Maybe the person was using other context cues to navigate and didn't need help, perhaps they were having a bad day, perhaps realising they might have been in danger made them feel fearful which led to an outburst. My friend once pulled a sighted woman out of the road when she stepped in front of a bus without looking, and her reaction was "get your hands off me!". It can be discouraging, but if you genuinely believe someone (disabled or not) is putting themself (or others) in harm's way it's always best to speak out even if they might get grumpy at you.
wertw120 maybe that person uses this station each day and knows everything, so it could have been little annoying.
everyone can be rude, disabled or not, don't think much about it.
There's not much I can say that hasn't been said since I'm not visually impaired but, as a disabled person, I would be mindful of tone; some of us deal with a lot of unsolicited 'help' that can make us a little snappy with those who are genuinely being thoughtful. That said, you obviously gotta be quick in that sort of situation so don't worry too much about politeness; If you were accidentally rude (or taken that way), a simple "oh, sorry" should cover your bases.
Personally, I'd try to say the same to anyone I saw messing about too near the track, regardless of ability, since getting snapped at is far better than someone falling in. That said, I'm the sort of person who plans for every random interaction I can think of, so I might not be a stellar example. Probably just do what you believe to be the right thing, and deal with the consequences as they come.
I'm also aware of the importance of kerbs for people who are blind - I spoke to one such person who I used to work next to. Also, there's a fine balance between the needs of people who are blind and people using wheelchairs who like flat surfaces. Junctions should not be over complicated either - perhaps Dutch style junctions with raised elliptical islands for pedestrian use (all crossings are perpendicular) - good wide corners for pedestrians and motorists (for access and legitimate journeys for which motor vehicles are required), but no traffic slips required (proper turning lanes instead) as the pedestrians circumnavigate the junction. Just omit the cycling aspect and you have a junction that is straight forward and fit for purpose for both pedestrians (including the above mentioned) and motor traffic. Bicycles are not efficient (just look at the clogged streets in the Netherlands, the space taken up and the expensive parking lots required). Trams (very space efficient) should take the place of cars and bikes for travel within larger towns and cities - trams need no dwell time in city/town centres. Also, walking should be encouraged a lot more - an efficient and proper load bearing form of exercise!
I may not totally agree with your points on bikes, but this is a really interesting and well thought-through comment. Not everyone can rely on public transport (autistic'*' people come to mind), and cars are a huge problem for British cities, but I certainly think that we should rely on public transport more as a society.
Mind you, I'm biased and lucky. I'm a Scot with a disability card, so I can get anywhere in this country by bus for free (given sufficient time and energy). It's not a perfect trade-off for not driving and I do have sensory processing issues that make buses problematic at times, but I'm not often well enough to cycle so it's ultimately quite a nice situation.
Well, when there's not a global pandemic, at least. But that can't be helped. :P Have you seen Jay Foreman's videos on bicycles/public transport in London? It's a two-parter and it's quite interesting and really funny.
Here's part one: ruclips.net/video/gohSeOYheXg/видео.html
'*' Also immune-compromised people, I'd guess, but that's not my experience and I don't want to use someone else's condition (that I don't know enough about) as some thoughtless point in a discussion. Too much of that going around. That said, I do feel it important to mention just because I reckon it's an issue most won't have thought of.
Hey there stay strong man
Great content
How can an international student who has vision problems find job in London??
I have MS and absolutely dread tactile paving.
I'd imagine dog crap is a big problem too and im seeing more and more of that on the pavement
Now, that's one of the things I keep saying about bikes - what about people with visual impairment?
Definitely something that should be tackled through education for cyclists and drivers, as well as through tactile paving at elevation changes, road transitions and cycle paths.
Wow.
Video about being sightless in London begins by introducing Hugh via text. Hmmm.
Why the glasses?
Because not all visually impaired people are the same, it varies. Having worked with someone who has a visual impairment for 20 years it's amazing how much you learn.
to protect his eyes from debris or objects that could harm his eyes
Unfortunately, for the pavement that is as flat as the road.... This is for people that have mobility disabilities.
if he’s blind then why is he wearing glasses? cuz wont they be useless
Vision impairment isn't just being totally "blind" - it comes in all sorts of forms, some people may still be able to see or read in certain circumstances and may have glasses for other reasons.
its to protect his eyes 💀
New road layout not safe walking cross bikes lane by bus stop bikes go to fast bike need giveaway went some get on and off