Safer streets for everyone

Reimagining urban design for people who are blind or have low vision

Imagine grabbing your phone to answer a call, thinking you are safe on the footpath only to discover you are in the middle of the road.

Across Australia, but especially in rapidly growing cities like Sydney, modern street design is becoming increasingly sleek. Unfortunately, that means it has become more difficult to navigate for people who are blind or have low vision.

While these designs are often created with aesthetics and accessibility in mind, we continue to hear stories filled with anxiety, uncertainty and near misses when the roads and footpaths are level, with no ridges, steps or tactile ground surface indicators (TGSIs) to differentiate between the two.

The problem with level surfaces

The shift to level footpaths might seem subtle, but for people who rely on kerbs as clear boundaries between the footpath and the road, the change is significant. Traditional kerbs act as tactile, physical signals, which is something you can detect with your cane or feel underfoot. Without them, it becomes nearly impossible to tell where the safe walking area ends, and the road begins.

Facing the silence: Near silent cars and urban risks

Electric vehicles are great for the environment, but their quietness can introduce real hazards to the blind and low vision community. When you can’t hear a car coming and you’re not even sure when you’ve stepped off the footpath, the risk multiplies.

How can we fix this?

To put it simply, road design needs to both reassure pedestrians that they are safe, and just as clearly warn them that they are about to step into traffic.

Cities can pair level designs with stronger, layered cues, including things like:

• Contrasting textures and colours on the ground surface to reinforce changes in space.
• Raised strips or small steps at road edges to simulate the old kerb sensation.
• Audible alerts or low-profile beacons near crossings to signal road entry.

Designing for the real-life mental load

When we’re out and about, most of us are thinking about work, family, errands or what’s for dinner, not about the footpath. But for someone who is blind or has low vision, there’s an extra layer, tracking every sound, texture and moving object just to stay safe. That mental load adds up fast and it’s the opposite of what good design should create.

Some solutions can include:

• Consistent layouts across intersections.
• Simplified and logical routes with minimal visual clutter.
• Clear, predictable placement of tactile indicators.

Seeing Eye Dogs are also trained to identify the safest places to stop at kerb edges and crossings, even when level footpaths make this more difficult. Their ability to recognise cues like TGSIs or slight changes in surface, adds an important layer of protection.

But just like with canes, their work becomes much harder when those cues are missing or unclear.

We need national guidance, quickly

Right now, urban planners, architects and councils are all trying to do their best, but without clear, consistent national standards that prioritise accessibility for people with vision loss, we’re getting a patchwork of designs that sometimes help, but often harm.

It’s time to bring people who get it into the conversation alongside planners and engineers. By updating accessibility standards and bringing in testing with real users before things are implemented, we can create spaces that are not only visually appealing but genuinely inclusive.

This isn’t just about access. It’s about safety and independence.