The importance of signage and wayfinding for persons with disabilities

SIGNAGE and wayfinding for persons with disabilities is an essential accessibility feature that is oftentimes neglected. As with all people, including those without disabilities, to find their way, persons with disabilities need to know 1) where they are; 2) where they want to go; 3) how to get to where they want to go; 4) if they are on the right path or route; 5) when they have arrived. Persons with disabilities have different needs, therefore wayfinding solutions should consider and understand the different needs of persons with different types of disabilities.

Persons with visual impairments range from people with low vision impairments to people who are blind. For people with low vision impairments, there should be sufficient foreground to background contrast in colors. However, foreground to background color contrast should also take into consideration people with color blindness. According to the IAAP's (International Association of Accessibility Professionals) training database, the most common type of color blindness is red-green color blindness, which affects a person's ability to distinguish reds, yellows and greens. So, it would be better to avoid these colors. This is why Batas Pambansa Bilang 344 (BP 344), or the "Accessibility Law," requires that signage "should be made of contrasting colors and gray matter to make reading easy" — with "gray matter" referring to contrast in gray or monochromatic color value.