APS make traffic signals accessible to deaf-blind people

Man wearing jeans and black jacket holds a long cane in his left hand and stands on the sidewalk next to a pole. On the pole is a blue box about 4 by 4 inches on the top and 10 inches high.  The man has his right hand on top of the box (the box is about as high as his waist). photo shows a close-up of the same man with his left hand on top of the box.  The front of the box has a yellow circle, an picture of a hand pointing up, a picture of a person, and a square glass light. photo shows the man with his cane in front, starting to walk into the crosswalk to cross the street.  The cars in the street beside him are moving forward.


Accessible pedestrian signals (APS) can enable people who are deaf-blind to recognize when the WALK signal begins. The deaf-blind man here, Arthur Roehrig, demonstrates usage of a Prisma APS, which has a tactile arrow on the top pointing in the direction of the crossing. The arrow vibrates in conjunction with audible ticking, which changes to indicate the onset of the walk signal.

Deaf-blind pedestrians who use APS for crossing must have sufficient street-crossing skills. They also must be aware of the possibility of vehicles crossing and conflicting with their path, and consider whether the risk is acceptable – see Getting Across the Street with Visual and Hearing Impairments, including suggestions for getting assistance to analyze risks.

Grateful appreciation to Arthur Roehrig for being photographed for these illustrations.

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