A GIS-based Route Mapping Tool for Disabled Access in Urban ...

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162knowledge of those who encounter the problems is not used, then urban places arelikely to remain hostile environments for many people. Indeed it is apparent thatmany of the changes which have taken place in towns and cities in recent years havemade access and mobility more, rather than less, difficult for disabled groups likewheelchair users. Research undertaken by Imrie and Wells (1993) showed a widespreadignorance amongst officers about ‘planning for the disabled’. There is, therefore,a need for information systems and good quality maps that can help plannersassess and compare the effects of planning decisions on disabled access to urbanspaces, and provide a means of integrating the needs of the disabled into urban planningand design.A more immediate strategy to overcome problems of inaccessibility is to improvethe mapped information available to the disabled, in order to enable them to betterplan and control their own use of urban space. At present there is an unevenness ofinformation targeted at disabled people to assist trip-making. Where town guides doexist they often provide little more than lists of services and facilities for disabledgroups in general. Attention is rarely drawn to those facets of urban places that hinderor prevent mobility. Not all towns in the UK have access guides and often wherethese do exist they were compiled some years ago and now need updating. There isno consistency within such guides, in terms of their level of detail, range of topics,style, presentation and format. Typically, most guides only give information on aspectsof access into and within buildings, together with a list services and facilitiestargeted at the disabled, while, there is an absence of information about street environmentsand mobility options. Consequently, people with disabilities are not able tomake informed decisions about how to move around urban places (especially instreets and those public spaces between buildings). The need is for informationwhich is sensitive to the disparate requirements of different user groups, and, ideally,to the individual user. The information provided must be based more firmly on theperceptions and experiences of the disabled themselves and be more readily accessibleto users. Furthermore, it should be possible to be readily updated, so as to incorporatethe often temporary but, nonetheless, severe changes that occur in the urbanlandscape.With traditional paper-based maps and information, these requirements are noteasily met. Through the use of Geographical Information Systems (GIS), however,the possibility exists to provide both planners and disabled individuals with up-todate,detailed and customised information to help them plan and manage their accessto urban areas. Providing this information in an interactive form would greatly enhancethe individual autonomy and quality of life of disabled people.Using GIS it is feasible to capture and integrate the relevant information at a highlevel of spatial resolution, to model either individual routes or access surfaces usingmulti-criteria assessment (MCA) techniques, and to present the results in map form.Network analysis and Artificial Intelligence (AI) techniques also provide the capabilityfor route modelling and route finding along networks. However, to translate thisCopyright © IGU/ISEP, Wien 2002. ISBN: 3-9500036-7-32504 EI P 906 I2 BealeL.doc 29.08.02
163capability to an operational planning and information tool, or a route-finding system,requires a number of problems to be solved. The first of these is to define the factorsthat actually determine access and mobility for disabled people.2. Defining the barriersA Geographical Information System (GIS) has been used to develop, test and apply aroute mapping tool for disabled access in urban areas. This model aimed to provide abasis for a fully interactive system that will allow wheelchair users to assess, compareand select routes through urban areas, which best meet their individual circumstancesand needs. Additionally, it has been developed for use by urban planners tobetter understand urban morphology from the perspective of a wheelchair user - potentiallyleading to recognition of hindrances and improved policy and decisionmaking.It can also be used to help local authorities and disabled groups produce upto-datemaps on access for the disabled to urban areas. The model has been testedand applied in Northampton, UK.In designing the GIS-based model and outlining the project aims, the demands ofthe end users were considered throughout. The GIS-based model was intended foruse by both wheelchair users and urban planners, although clearly the knowledge ofthe subject laid predominately with one user group. In order to improve access to informationpotential a primary aim in model development was to create a simple andstraightforward structure so that the GIS-based model could ultimately be used byboth those experienced and inexperienced with computers.Four hundred wheelchair users were contacted from across Northamptonshire,England, and invited to complete a postal questionnaire to determine their perceptionof hindrance in urban spaces. The sample was designed to be representative of age,gender, level and type of disability and the type of wheelchair used so as not to bebiased towards particular population groups. The questionnaire was organised intofour sections. These covered personal details including disability and type of wheelchairmost commonly used; those aspects of the built environment that constrain mobilityand access; problems faced when attempting to travel to and around Northamptontown centre; and facilities regularly used by wheelchair users and what problems,if any, were routinely encountered. The questionnaire responses provided importantinsights into the real problems that exist for wheelchair users in navigating urbanspaces (Figure 1). A number of focus groups were convened to examine emergentthemes more rigorously. During the course of each session photographs of obstaclesmost readily recalled in the questionnaire were used to stimulate discussion.Copyright © IGU/ISEP, Wien 2002. ISBN: 3-9500036-7-32504 EI P 906 I2 BealeL.doc 29.08.02
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