[nabs-l] accessible pedestrian signals APS

Mon May 2 23:42:00 UTC 2011

Hi Ashley and all,

I don't know exactly what NFB's official position is at this point. I
personally am a big fan of audible traffic signals, for a few reasons.
First, as you pointed out, there are several kinds of intersections
where the auditory cue to cross is rather subtle-such as
T-intersections, those where the parallel street is generally quiet or
those with leading turn arrows, where you have to listen for the
turning traffic to stop before crossing. I know it is possible to
reliably cross these kinds of intersections using traffic cues alone,
but the potential for mistakes (both missing the cue to cross and
inadvertently crossing at the wrong time) is substantial especially
for those who have had insufficient training. Second, as far as I
know, there is no reliable way to tell when your walk signal is about
to end. So if you come up to an intersection and the light is in your
favor, there's no way to tell whether you will have enough time to
cross before the light changes. The only really safe way to handle
this is to wait until the light turns red and then green again, which
can be inconvenient. Trust me, I've gambled on these and tried to
cross without enough time-the result is scary not to mention
embarrassing. Finally, though I know this logic is not always popular,
I do think that if the sighted are given a clear cue to cross the
street and it is not an undue hardship to make that signal accessible
to the blind, it should be done. I can't imagine an intersection where
sighted pedestrians are expected to watch the traffic without any kind
of walk signal or light indicating when it was safe to cross.
That being said, I don't think this necessarily has to be our biggest
priority at this time. I also recognize that some blind travelers find
audible signals bothersome and I would support some way of making the
sound optional or implementing a tactile (i.e. vibrating) signal,
which would also benefit the deaf-blind.

Arielle

On 5/2/11, Jorge Paez <computertechjorgepaez at gmail.com> wrote:
> I thought it wasn't supposed to be enforced till like 2012?
>
>
> On May 2, 2011, at 7:14 PM, <bookwormahb at earthlink.net> wrote:
>
>> George,
>> Actually the ACB seems as mad as ever; yes they won in the court; but the
>> government has not produced accessible currency yet.
>> Some do not feel the decision will be enforced.
>>
>> Ashley
>>
>> -----Original Message----- From: Jorge Paez
>> Sent: Monday, May 02, 2011 6:57 PM
>> To: National Association of Blind Students mailing list
>> Subject: Re: [nabs-l] accessible pedestrian signals APS
>>
>> I believe the national is officially against expanding the use of APS.
>>
>> As far as accessible currency, didn't the ACB already close that case in
>> court?
>> ACB V. US trasury 2009 or something like that?
>>
>>
>> On May 2, 2011, at 6:36 PM, <bookwormahb at earthlink.net> wrote:
>>
>>> Hi all,
>>>
>>> I am on the ACB list and as usual with controversial topics, they are
>>> taking the Accessible pedestrian signal and accessible currency
>>> topics and really trashing the NFB and they don’t know the real positions
>>> and facts.
>>> They think NFB opposes both.
>>> I may not tell them as they will not listen, but what are the positions?
>>> Nfb is not opposed to APS fully.
>>>
>>> What is the national position? Any late resolutions?  Also, what do you
>>> think and when have you found them helpful or not helpful?
>>> Personally, I’d like the APS at intersections where you have to press the
>>> walk button as a pedestrian.  We cannot see the walk signal to know when
>>> our time starts; you have to press the button in order to tell the
>>> computer that you are a pedestrian and need a walk phase to cross the
>>> street.  I think these are called actuated signals.  These streets favor
>>> drivers, not pedestrians; the busier streets get more traffic time.  That
>>> change of the signal is activated by a computer.
>>>
>>> At fixed time streets, those streets with a set time to cross, without a
>>> button are easier IMO and you got sufficient traffic cues to hear to
>>> cross.
>>> I also think some streets are more complex now a days with more turn
>>> lanes and islands, and a accessible signal would be great.  Some signals
>>> even talk to you and count down the time left in the walk interval.
>>>
>>> So I guess I see APS as a benefit  when you have insufficient traffic
>>> cues to cross the street.  I’ve tried to learn how to cross T streets,
>>> and those are confusing too; maybe the APS would help there too.  No
>>> parallel traffic on T-shaped streets.
>>>
>>> Look forward to your thoughts; I know NFB modified their position on APS,
>>> so I’m not sure what it is now.  I certainly don’t want them everywhere,
>>> but in several cases with complex traffic patterns I can see their use.
>>>
>>> Ashley
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>>
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-- 
Arielle Silverman
President, National Association of Blind Students
Phone:  602-502-2255
Email:
nabs.president at gmail.com
Website:
www.nabslink.org