A Theoretical Model for Urban Walking Among People With Disabilities.

This paper is an attempt to advance research on walking at a neighborhood level of analysis for people with disabilities by proposing a theoretical model that combines the knowledge of two disciplines: traffic planning and environmental psychology. The aim is to provide guidance for a discussion and a plan for future interdisciplinary investigations by proposing a model that accounts for the dynamic interaction between environmental characteristics, human processes, and walking experience among individuals with a disability. For this purpose, traffic planners, and environmental psychologists came together to discuss theories, concepts, and thematic relevance in a series of focus group meetings.

Detection of warning surfaces in pedestrian environments: the importance for blind people of kerbs, depth, and structure of tactile surfaces.

Purpose: The overall purpose was to study whether and how persons with blindness detect warning surfaces with a long white cane in a real pedestrian environment after following a natural guidance surface to the warning surfaces. Of particular interest was the importance of kerb, depth, and structure of the warning surfaces.

Method: A concurrently mixed methods approach, with a combination of observation using a structured form together with 'think aloud' and a structured interview, was used.