Visually impaired people are missing out on the Wellington waterfront, but a solution is far from sight.
VISUALLY IMPAIRED people are missing out on the Wellington waterfront, but a solution is far from sight.
The area needs to be more user friendly for the blind and vision impaired, a lobby group told Wellington City Council during the annual plan hearings earlier this year.
Association of Blind Citizens Wellington chairperson Ann Bain is an advocate for all those who are vision impaired in the Wellington region.
Her submission says the promenade area along the waterfront has the potential to be hazardous for the vision impaired, when the space is shared with cyclists.
Ms Bain says every person has the right to be on the waterfront.
Cyclists and pedestrians have a right to the space, but it has to be safe for everyone, she says. “It just doesn’t work sharing the same area,” she told NewsWire.
The Cycling Advocates Network’s recent Cruise the Waterfront courtesy campaign aims to prevent bad biking along the waterfront and encourage people to bike with care, and make themselves heard by either calling out or using their bell.
Although this has helped, Ms Bain says the area would be safest if there were separate areas for both walking and cycling. Because the blind and vision impaired may not be able to see markings, a textured paving surface is needed.
The council has yet to commit to providing the surface. Ms Bain says council has always been supportive and is awaiting an outcome.
At council-owned Wellington Waterfront Ltd, chief executive Ian Pike says the Wellington Waterfront Framework of 2001 established that the waterfront should be a shared surface.
When it comes to finding a solution to the problem, he says: “A dedicated cycle route has been considered several times, generally at the instigation of cycle advocates wishing to have a route which would allow them to cycle faster and in safety.”
However, he says separate spaces would be more hazardous. Shared spaces tend to be safer as people are more cautious when sharing a busy space with others, says Ms Bain.
He says they are still trying to find a solution that will work best for everybody.
The council’s manager for city communities and grants, Jenny Rains, has an ongoing interest in working with disability groups. She says everyone needs to work together to make the shared spaces along the waterfront less hazardous for pedestrians, especially the blind and the elderly.
Although there isn’t enough space for separate areas, no one has yet to have come up with a realistic solution.
“We understand this is an issue and are working hard at being inclusive,” she says.
Island Bay resident Allan Jones has been blind all his life. He enjoys walking along the waterfront on a sunny day.
The shared spaces along the waterfront concern him although he has never had any direct issues because of it. “I do worry about the mixing of the cycle and walking tracks,” he says.
A textured surface would be helpful, and he suggests a path with a kerb around that could be easily followed with a cane.
Front page photo: Ed Yourdon
